Name: How to reduce poverty? Fix homes
Uploaded: 2013-06-20T15:01:09Z
Duration: 17 min 25 s
Description: In 1985, architect Paul Pholeros was challenged to "stop people getting sick" in a small indigenous community in south Australia. And it meant thinking way beyond medicine. In this sparky, interactive talk, Pholeros shares his work with Healthabitat, which works to reduce poverty through practical design fixes -- in Australia and beyond.

In 1985, architect Paul Pholeros was challenged to "stop people getting sick" in a small indigenous community in south Australia. And it meant thinking way beyond medicine. In this sparky, interactive talk, Pholeros shares his work with Healthabitat, which works to reduce poverty through practical design fixes -- in Australia and beyond.

How to reduce poverty? Fix homes

Improving basic housing functions like working showers and safe electricity can dramatically boost health and reduce poverty. In remote Australian communities, only 35 percent of homes had a working shower, leading to lifelong health issues for children. Practical repairs by local teams raised shower function rates to 86 percent and cut hospital admissions linked to poor environments by 40 percent. Simple, focused action in collaboration with residents transforms lives far more than complex policies or outside interventions.