Anna Kopec, Assistant Professor, SPPA
Hello! I am Anna Kopec, an assistant professor in public policy and inequality. My areas of research and expertise broadly focus on public policy and democratic participation. My focus has been on homelessness in liberal welfare states, primarily in Canada and Australia. I am currently working on a project that considers the extent to which lived experience is included in existing homelessness research, policies and services in Canada. I am also hoping to map the services in the homelessness system in several Canadian cities and examine how they are evaluated by individuals experiencing homelessness.
I am currently writing my book which builds on my doctoral research that examined the effects of public policies on the political agency and participation of individuals experiencing homelessness in Melbourne and Toronto. This included over 100 interviews with individuals experiencing homelessness, service providers and policymakers. The book highlights the importance of lived experience not only to policy but also to research which led to my interest in research methodologies and policymaking. SPPA, as not only a school of public policy and administration, but also its interdisciplinary nature, offers an environment where I can not only work with students and faculty from various disciplines, but also share my research in audiences beyond academia.
The COVID-19 pandemic made the failures of our homelessness system even more evident, providing a necessary impetus to re-examine our policies and services. I hope this sense of urgency remains and pushes policymakers and researchers to work alongside community members and individuals with a lived expertise to create long-term solutions.
If you are an aspiring policymaker, consider lived experience as expertise. As you evaluate, analyze, implement and create policy, look around the table and ensure that you are collaborating with the communities and groups the policy targets. Writing and implementing policy without those that it affects will not lead to effective or adequate policy.