On World Day of Social Justice, hear from Roisin who is currently on a six-week work placement with Habitat Ireland's Communications department.
I’m Roisin from Armagh; I’m a final year university student from St. Marys University College Belfast.
I’m currently undertaking a six-week placement in the Communications department in Habitat for Humanity based in the Lisburn office. I am hoping to succeed in a career in teaching so undergoing a placement with Habitat has opened my eyes up to housing issues, inequality and social justice which will be useful in my future. Values such as equality and human rights are so important in the classroom and in the education system and global justice is something so important which I study already.
When this blog is published, it will be Friday 20th of February, also known as World Day of Social Justice. It is important to learn, acknowledge and understand social injustice and try to counter it. Habitat Ireland is the perfect place for me to learn more about social injustice locally, but also globally, and become more aware of solutions and agencies that are trying to combat it.
Habitat for Humanity addresses housing poverty by building affordable and safe houses for those in need. There is a clear focus on creating a world where everyone has a decent place to live where they are safe, happy and healthy.
In Ireland, Habitat directly tackles issues of poverty through its network of Habitat of Restores which provide access to low-cost home improvement materials, employability training for people of all abilities and diverts tonnes of useable materials for landfill. Habitat also raises funds to support programmes in some of our poorest communities.
Habitat’s vision of “a world where everyone has a decent place to live" speaks directly to the social justice issues in relation to housing poverty. Access to safe, affordable housing is considered a basic human need and social justice focuses on ensuring fair access to essential resources.
Habitat for Humanity promotes social justice by helping to ensure that everyone, regardless of their income or background, has access to safe and affordable housing.
Over the first week of my placement, I have learnt so much about the organisation, how it runs and how the ReStores work. I have embraced the day-to-day operations and I'm really enjoying it.
So far I have mainly been helping with social media and trying to put out information so more people can understand what Habitat Ireland is and how they can support our mission. You might have seen some of the TikToks I've produced, or the information posts about Habitat for Humanity Ireland, the ‘House to Home’ programme on our Instagram page!
I have really enjoyed reading other placement students and volunteers experiences working with Habitat for Humanity and I am excited to learn more throughout my next few weeks here and I look forward to going to other stores and meeting other staff and volunteers.
