COVID-19 has called on all of us to unite together in support of our values. NPH's core mission and values have long demonstrated our commitment to working together to advance affordable homes as the foundation for thriving individuals, families, and neighborhoods -- black, brown, and white.

We recognize that our members, partners, and supporters are facing uncertainty about how to continue our work in the midst of the shelter in place mandate. We're committed to sharing resources, tools, and opportunities to advance our movement and create solutions for our communities. This public health crisis exposes even more clearly just how critical safe, stable, homes are to our communities' ability to get and stay healthy. It underscores that we must all work together to support the most vulnerable, and that achieving economic equity is necessary for a strong and healthy economy. Read on for more resources on how to work together to advance our mission in this time.

Ten counties in and around the Bay Area announced “shelter in place” orders for all residents. The directive involves San Francisco, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Mateo, Marin, Contra Costa, Monterey, Sacramento, Sonoma, and Alameda counties and will stay in place until at least April 7. In this article The Guardian breaks down what this shelter in place means for our region and how you will be effected, providing the critical social distancing our communities need to get and stay healthy. We pull through this by pulling together.

Our affordable housing and housing justice messaging efforts are more critical than ever.  Given the current economic, public health, and political climate, promoting messages, structures, and tools that result in a productive narrative, which can overcome the uneasy, fear-based, individualistic narrative, is essential.

We are excited to share this messaging guide, developed by Anat Shenker-Osorio and the Represent Together Campaign, to help our movement navigate the COVID-19 crisis with language that keeps us focused on what's most important in this time -- unity and compassion.

Given the urgency to protect the most vulnerable members of our community, the state legislature will be closed until April 13.

The process for committee hearings and opportunities to engage will also evolve, and NPH is committed to keeping you informed as we learn more. This public health crisis exposes even more clearly just how critical safe, stable, homes are to our communities' ability to get and stay healthy and  NPH is working with our members and partners to identify timely proposals and recommendations that can ensure all of our neighbors have a safe, stable place to live and get and stay healthy.

In the meantime, we're also committed to continuing our work on our sponsored bills that will create lasting and impactful solutions ahead. NPH Policy Director Pedro Galvao and NPH members were proud to join Senator Scott Wiener last week to introduce SB 899. The proposed bill will allow nonprofit hospitals and faith institutions like churches, synagogues, and mosques, build affordable homes on their property.

There will also be Legislative Issues Committee Meeting (via conference call) on Thursday, April 2 that we encourage members to sign up for in order to discuss and strategize opportunities to continue making progress for affordable housing in California.

To protect the safety of our members and communities, we are postponing all NPH and ELPN trainings listed below. We will alert our community as new dates have been established.

• March 19, ELPN: Insurance 201 Training – Understanding Insurance Certificates (POSTPONED)
• March 26, Brown Bag: Implementing New 3P’s Policy Tools (rescheduled to June 12)
• March 26, ELPN: Modular Project Tour & Happy Hour (POSTPONED)
• April 7 Resident Services training: Sustaining Ourselves At Work - Critical Elements Of Self Care That Supports Community Engagement (POSTPONED)

For those already registered for any of these events, an NPH staff will reach out to offer full refunds.

The 24th Annual Leadership Awards will also be postponed until further notice. Our events team is monitoring the current public health crisis very closely. NPH is focused on keeping you updated as updates arise. Our families and neighborhoods are stronger, safer and healthier when we show up and represent for one another in moments of joy and celebration, and of illness and crisis. We look forward to celebrating the strength and leadership of our community in person when it is safe to do so.

Advocacy. Equity. Strategy. Community. NPH’s core values tell the story of who we are, what we stand for, and how we approach the critical work of our mission. Last summer, we began the work of engaging our members, partners, and supporters in learning more about how we can demonstrate these values and best serve our communities.

This week, we were excited to share the outcomes of that work: NPH’s new look and feel that anchors our values in our image and imbues them throughout our communications. See our brand in action at our new, accessible website that advances our mission to make the Bay Area a place where everyone - no matter their race or income - has an affordable and stable home and gives us the information, tools, connections, and opportunities to turn our mission into reality. Reach out with your feedback on our new look here.

3/19 - Coronavirus webinar. On Thursday, March 18 (11:30am) the National Housing Conference will host a "COVID-19 and Housing" webinar. The webinar, "will feature experts in epidemiology and public health on the COVID-19 outbreak, who will discuss how to prevent spreading the disease, and appropriate precautions and contingency planning for property managers." Register here.

3/19 CANCELLED - Housing California Lobby Day. On March 19, 2020, advocates from all over the state will hold a rally and press conference in support of homes for all Californians. Then we’ll head to the Capitol to make sure legislators hear from us about bills to increase affordable housing and end homelessness.