“It's not something that can wait”: Defining and promoting gender-inclusive standards for WaSH access for Californians without housing

Abstract

This paper stems from a first known attempt to specify basic standards of care for water, sanitation, and hygiene resources (“WaSH”) for people who lack permanent, stable housing. The project's scope was the U.S. state of California, which is home to half of all people in the U.S. who are living outdoors without housing. Recommendations presented here focus on: 1) defining and specifying gender-inclusive minimum standards for WaSH access and 2) identifying effective ways to promote the urgent importance of WaSH access within a current social-political context that is increasingly hostile toward unhoused people across the United States and in California specifically.