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MN NOW continues its support for housing affordability in the state By Rachel Callanan MN NOW has joined as a Minnesota Housing Partnership Year 2001 Advocacy Partner At the last MN NOW state board meeting, (Sept. 9, 2000) MN NOW made the decision to continue its participation in advocacy for affordable housing in the state by renewing its membership as a Minnesota Housing Partnership (MHP) Year 2001 Advocacy Partner. Participation in this coalition of groups across the state provides MN NOW the opportunity to weigh in on the affordable housing issue that is a growing problem statewide. Participation gives us access to information about what is happening on the state and federal levels regarding affordable housing. Action alerts are provided by MHP regarding housing in the state legislature; these action alerts were used by MN NOW often last year during the legislative session to get the word out about housing policies being proposed. Rachel Callanan, former Legislative Coordinator for MN NOW, was recently hired as the Policy Advocate for MHP, and she will be acting as the liaison between MN NOW and MHP. Other MN NOW members interested in housing advocacy should contact Rachel at (651) 649-1710 ext. 107 to attend meetings and get updates from MHP directly. MN NOW has Joined the HousingMinnesota Public Education Campaign Collaborative The MN NOW state board also reaffirmed our commitment to housing issues by joining a collaborative focused on a public education campaign called HousingMinnesota. This collaborative, under the leadership of Minnesota Housing Partnership, was highlighted in the last issue of the MN NOW Times. The purpose of the HousingMinnesota campaign is to improve the public perception of people who need and/or live in affordable housing and to increase the availability of quality affordable housing in Minnesota. As a collaborative member, MN NOW will: * Support the campaign objectives. * Participate in the media training and serve as an information resource/contact. * Distribute campaign materials to build support for affordable housing and affordable housing residents. * Incorporate the messages of the HousingMinnesota campaign into its communications vehicles, such as newsletters and special events. * Help translate the increased community support into improved public policy on affordable housing issues. * Identify and solicit the participation of affordable housing residents (current or previous) to lend their image or story to any or all of the following efforts: * Advertising (may include billboards, bus signs, brochures, radio, etc.) * Media Relations (may include interviews or other features on the radio, print media, etc.) If you have benefited from affordable housing, or you know someone who has benefited from affordable housing, and are willing to share your/their story, please contact Jesse Williams at MHP (651) 649-1710 ext. 106. For more information about HousingMinnesota and affordable housing in general, visit the Web sites: www.housingminnesota.org or www.mhponline.org.