Guest:

Elizabeth Funk - CEO of DignityMoves

Guest Bio: 

Elizabeth Funk is the Founder and CEO of DignityMoves, a nonprofit redefining how we get unhoused people off the street through interim housing deployed with speed, dignity, and cost-efficiency. With a background in impact investing and urban innovation, Elizabeth brings real-world solutions to a policy conversation often stuck in ideology. Her mission is simple: To ensure no one is forced to sleep outside in a state as wealthy and resourceful as California.

Show Summary

California has spent more than $24 billion on homelessness during the Newsom administration — so why does the crisis only seem to be getting worse?

In this episode, Elizabeth Funk breaks down what’s really behind the persistent homelessness crisis and offers a bold, clear-eyed solution. As the founder of DignityMoves, she argues that the real issue is getting unhoused people off the street asap and providing them with the community and support necessary to turn their lives around.

She shares why interim housing needs to come before permanent housing, how interim housing can be built faster and cheaper, and why even well-meaning politicians and nonprofits are incentivized to keep our currently broken system.

You’ll also hear how DignityMoves is creating communities with privacy, safety, and dignity — and what it would actually take to scale this model across the state.

Chapters

00:00 – Why Is Homelessness Worse After $24 Billion?

01:10 – California’s Policy Choice: Shelter vs. Housing

03:45 – The True Cost of Living on the Street

04:29 – From Job Loss to Meth: A Personal Story

05:46 – How the Homeless System Is Set Up to Fail

07:00 – Why Shelter Isn’t Enough (and What’s Better)

09:14 – Inside a DignityMoves Site: How It Works

11:52 – Privacy, Pets & Partners: Dignity with DignityMoves

14:24 – Stabilization Before Solutions: A New Model

16:24 – Scaling the Model: 1% to 100%

17:09 – Why Everyone Should Support Interim Housing

18:57 – Who Has a Financial Incentive to Keep This Broken?

20:39 – Misconceptions from Politicians & Citizens

22:20 – How to Get Involved with DignityMoves

24:01 – Rapid Fire: Fixing It, Fast

24:59 – California: A State With All the Tools — And One Big Flaw

Connect with Elizabeth Funk

X: https://x.com/elizabethfunkca

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/efunksanfran/?hl=en

Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-funk/

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