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Building Evidence for Thriving Communities

The Centre for Integrated Housing & Well-Being (CIHW) transforms affordable housing communities into living laboratories where research, housing, health, and human services work together to improve lives and strengthen systems.

About Us

The Centre for Integrated Housing & Well-Being

The Centre for Integrated Housing & Well-Being (CIHW) is a research and learning organization advancing innovative approaches to affordable housing, health, and social well-being.

CIHW was established to address a critical gap in the housing sector: the lack of long-term, real-world evidence examining how integrated housing and support systems affect people, communities, and public systems over time.

By embedding research directly into housing environments, CIHW generates practical, policy-relevant evidence that informs housing design, service integration, aging-in-place strategies, and community well-being.

Our work brings together researchers, housing providers, nonprofit organizations, governments, students, and residents to co-create solutions that are scalable, evidence-informed, and grounded in lived experience.

Charming Neighborhood

Mission

Research that helps people thrive where they live.

Vision

Thriving communities built on evidence, compassion, and connection.

Values

Stack of Files

Evidence-Informed Innovation

We believe complex social challenges require rigorous research, continuous learning, and practical innovation.

Image by Adomas Aleno

Collaboration

We bring together housing providers, community organizations, researchers, governments, and residents to create integrated solutions.

Image by Duncan Shaffer

Equity & Inclusion

We are committed to building communities where people of all backgrounds can live with dignity, stability, and belonging.

Image by William White

Community-Centred Research

We believe research should improve real lives, strengthen communities, and inform meaningful systems change.

Why It Matters

Creating Evidence That Changes Systems

Canada’s housing challenges cannot be solved through housing alone. CIHW studies how coordinated supports, integrated services, and community design influence health, stability, economic mobility, aging in place, and social connection.

Our work helps governments, housing providers, nonprofits, and funders make better evidence-informed decisions that improve outcomes while strengthening public systems.

Key Focus Areas
Research Areas

  • Affordable & Supportive Housing

  • Mental Health & Well-Being

  • Workforce Development

  • Longitudinal Community Outcomes

  • Aging in Place

  • Community Inclusion

  • Housing System Innovation

  • Homelessness Prevention

  • Integrated Service Models

  • Applied Behavioural Research

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