Thread by @John57Heinz

1/ Lynne and Marc Benioff are the angel investors behind a $30 million gift to fund research to help find sustainable solutions to ending homelessness. Their gift to the University of California in San Francisco will be used to create the UCSF Benioff Homelessness and Housing I

2/ nitiative. Marc Benioff is the Chief Executive Officer for the San Francisco based customer relationship management company Salesforce. A longtime ally and advocate of policies to address homelessness, Benioff last year helped spearhead the movement to pass Proposition C.

3/ Despite receiving criticism from competitors in the tech industry such as Twitter’s Jack Dorsey, Proposition C is an approved ballet initiative. The law, still in the process of receiving approval from California courts, is designed to tax large companies based in San

4/ Francisco and target funds to combat homelessness. Lynne and Marc Benioff were motivated to make their generous donation so that evidence-based research can help guide the best strategy for using the funds collected from Prop C. It is important to note that, the UCSF

5/ Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative creates not just a single or even multiple research studies but is instead, an entire center at one of the world’s largest public research university system to address homelessness. This is truly monumental and worth celebrating.

6/ While many have rightfully applauded the Benioffs for their generous donation, some have criticized the decision to target their money towards research instead of programming costs. Why Research on Homelessness is so Critical Homelessness is a systemic problem. It has not

7/ reached epidemic proportion because of poor choices on the part of individuals, but because of intersectional failures at the foundations of American society. Research is a critical component to ending homelessness because there are so many lingering questions which have

8/ yet to be answered in the research literature. Margot Kushel MD, Director of the University of California at San Francisco’s Department of Medicine’s Center for Vulnerable Populations recently took to Twitter to outline some of these key questions. Kushel is the principal

9/ researcher that will be working on the UCSF Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative. As a Director at one of the world’s leading public research institutions, Kushel is in a unique position to address homelessness. The Center for Vulnerable Populations is focused on

10/ solving the most critical public health challenges for the most vulnerable citizens. With a $30 million research donation, Kushel will be able to complete the research necessary to end homelessness not only in California’s Bay Area, but around the world. On Twitter,

11/ Kushel described how a lack of affordable housing is a key component of the rise of homelessness in San Francisco’s Bay Area and around the United States. Currently, in the United States, there are only 35 affordable housing units, for every 100 extremely low-income

12/ families. In California, the situation is even worse, with only 22 low-cost housing units available, for every 100 of the neediest. This situation has been examined to various degrees in the research literature, and used to create policies such as the United States’ federal

13/ approach to homelessness: a policy known as housing first. Housing first advocates for the creation of permanent supportive housing, without conditions such as sobriety which had been components of earlier approaches to managed housing programs for the homeless. San

14/ Francisco was an early adopter of the housing first model. Despite this, its homeless population has swelled to the third largest in the United States. This is why smart, well-designed research studies, such as what Lynne and Marc Benioff’s donation has provided for, is so

15/ essential.Leading researchers such as Mary Cunningham, Senior Fellow and Vice President of Metropolitan Housing and Communities at the Urban Institute believe housing first will end homelessness, only if it is applied, in a thoughtful, evidence-based way. On Twitter,

16/ Cunningham recently outlined some of the key questions left to answer about policies to end homelessness: What is the true number of people at-risk for homelessness? While, exit flow numbers, of people exiting homelessness are clear, no one truly knows how many people are

17/ homeless or at-risk of being homelessness due to shortfalls such as the point in time counting system. What measures can be put in place to ensure those who enter into low-cost housing are able to keep it and not experience prejudice? Cunningham emphasizes the evidence

18/ supporting universal vouchers though confirms other lingering questions about this topic. Chief among these are her questions about how housing markets will be able to absorb the formerly homeless population as they transition into housing. What incentives are necessary for

19/ getting landlords to participate in low-cost housing programs? Cunningham also questions what market rates low-cost housing rents will need to be set at so as to prevent excessive inflation. What can be done for those most at-risk for homelessness? Many of the most

20/ vulnerable will likely still require support to be able to maintain housing. How can these supports be applied in a way that respects dignity and individual choice? What will micro-units for low income adults look like? Cunningham outlines that most homeless people are

21/ single adults. Micro-units are a housing concept that need further research to best be applied to urban planning and policy making addressing homelessness. What will an affordable, effective and sustainable permanent supportive housing model look like? Cunningham highlights

22/ the need for research to build scalable solutions. Fortunately, thanks to the generous donation of Lynne and Marc Benioff, that research can now be carried out. Margot Kushel has confirmed her desire to use the funds allocated to UCSF to tackle these topics among others.

23/ Among the key questions Kushel aims to address with the $30 million donation from the Benioff's are: Who is not being served by the permanent supportive housing model? Kushel outlines that current services are not meeting the needs of all homeless. Thus, her research will a

24/ nalyze the gaps in coverage and find the best solution for addressing homelessness in the Bay Area. How can services be designed for an aging homeless population? By 2030, the aging homeless population has been predicted to triple. Kushel feels research will need to be

25/ designed to serve this vulnerable and expanding population. Will services for homeless also encompass personal care? Many individuals such as those living with dementia or who have developmental disabilities require personal care assistance. Kushel questions how existing

26/ care programs can be modified to fit with a new model to addressing homelessness. What happens if low-cost housing options are placed in high-cost areas? Kushel outlines the need to better explore how to design a constellation of care services across communities which allow

27/ service providers to meet the needs of a diverse population of recipients. Kushel goes on to explain the enormity of the situation she is facing: currently in San Francisco, a single unit could cost $600,000. The expenses of building all the necessary units, modifying

28/ existing services such as Medicaid, and adequately addressing Bay Area homelessness are immense. As a tremendous a problem as this is, Kushel believes it can be solved and research is the critical component necessary to arrive at the right solution. Corporate Social

29/ Responsibility in Action High quality, evidence based research is one of the best ways to influence community stakeholders. Having a business leader, from the community, make such a massive donation sends a clear message not just to other companies, but to the entire nation

30/ . Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a buzzword which nearly every major business has tried to work into their branding. Salesforce, the maker of the extremely popular customer relationship management tool, is taking things quite a bit further. The idea is simple:

31/ businesses are responsible not just to the people that profit from them, what economist Milton Friedman would have called shareholders, but to their employees, the communities they operate in, and the general public, also known as stakeholders. Marc Benioff is that rare,

32/ altruistic business maverick who lives and breathes corporate social responsibility. For Benioff, being a good, respectful neighbor is not something to do when the cameras are watching, or simply for the sake of generating sound bites. While it’s true, Benioff has received

33/ coverage for his recent contribution from traditional media sources, business and philanthropic journals, he has a long history of this kind of thing. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff is the perfect example of corporate social responsibility in action. Last year in 2018, Marc

34/ Benioff donated $11.5 million to the University of California at San Francisco. He didn’t stop there though, he also donated $6.1 million to help secure a lease for the Bristol Hotel. The Bristol House is now part of a low-cost housing project for the homeless and

35/ marginally housed. Since 2005, Lynn and Marc Benioff have donated more than $357 million to the University of California. That money is being used to dramatically expand mental health services, open an entire children’s hospital, and research the homelessness epidemic.

36/ Last year, Benioff also helped raise more than $100 million to support the Tipping Point Community, another low-cost housing initiative. He and his wife also donated $11.5 million to Hamilton Families, a Bay Area nonprofit that helps to move people off the street and into

37/ long term, stable housing. The Lynne and Marc Benioff also donated more than $50 million to San Francisco and Oakland school districts in the last five years. Salesforce, Benioff’s company has also been a leader in offering its services to nonprofit organizations. The

38/ company has also made clear efforts to give back to the community and be a strong advocate of corporate social responsibility. Salesforce and its CEO Marc Benioff, have been vocal about the direction they would like to see Silicon Valley’s tech giants go in. Many of his

39/ fellow tech leaders, notably Jack Dorsey of Twitter and Marc Zuckerberg of Facebook publicly disagree.Nonetheless, the evidence continues to mount… Marc Benioff is a Bay Area business leader and pillar of his community. Together with his wife Lynne, Marc has set an amazing

40/ example. Whether his individual actions, or those undertaken on behalf of the company he runs are considered, the answer is clear. Marc Benioff is a truly remarkable person and a true ally to humanity. Together with his wife Lynne, Benioff is creating real change not only in

41/ the San Francisco Bay Area they call home, but around the world. For those who are passionate about ending homelessness in the United States, it’s time to celebrate. Not because the story is over and the game is won, but because we’ve reached an unmistakable and exciting

42/ moment… A Victory and a Moment to Celebrate When I was completing my Social Work Masters Degree at the University of Vermont in Burlington, one of my professors stressed the need to celebrate moments like this. I will never forget the clear conviction in Dr. Suzy

43/ Comerford’s voice as she told me the importance of acknowledging victories in life. While the work to end homelessness is far from complete, the fact that a prominent business leader has made such a generous donation is a clear victory. Thanks to the passion, resources, and

44/ tenacity of Lynne and Marc Benioff, lives will be impacted around the world. This is a shining example of the true philanthropy individuals, families, and organizations across the United States are doing every day, to help make our country better. America is without a doubt

45/ one of the greatest nations on the planet. While we still have much to do to reach our truest potential, moments like this remind me of how of far we’ve come. As the storms of life ravage and rage around you, do not forget to stop and celebrate, with gratitude and reverence

46/ , the victories of life. Thank you to Lynne and Marc Benioff for giving me one more reason to be grateful and reverent. Ending homelessness in this lifetime is possible thanks to people like you...Together, we are helping to end homelessness!

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