Vienna in winter: how homeless fights, hope and dignity to regain

Vienna in winter: how homeless fights, hope and dignity to regain

Wien, Österreich - Some unfortunate twists in life can lead to people in Vienna to become homeless. The head of homeless help, Markus Hollendomen, describes the situation that a job loss, illness or the end of a relationship often suffice to bring someone onto the street. Despite a comprehensive offer of help in Vienna, the homeless problem remains a major challenge, especially in the cold season. To help these people are ready, such as the Kälte-app and the cold telephone of Caritas, which enable passers-by to help quickly if they see the homeless person who Cold suffer.

The Fund Social Es Vienna (FSW) offers a variety of support options, with over 4,683 living and sleeping places and 2,299 childcare units that can together around 6,520 clients can supply at the same time. This shows that homelessness has not increased, but the existing offers of help are used intensively. Dutch residents emphasize that around two thirds of the homeless people in Vienna come from Eastern Europe and often only linger in one place briefly, which underlines the situational nature of homelessness. In 2023, over 4,800 people were accompanied directly to their own apartments as part of the "Housing First" program, which gives them stability and dignity, according to Hollendohn, who sees this as an important concern of the city. Nevertheless, he emphasizes that the problem of homelessness goes beyond the city limits and requires more than just local measures.

growing challenges in the Covid 19 pandemy

Pandemic has also made the situation of the homeless people in Vienna more complex. As Dutch residents explain, homeless people tend to become younger and more often female. The contact with homeless is considered extremely important, especially when it comes to health concerns. However, there are hardly any daily statistics on homelessness, since it often arises at short notice and can change quickly. Hollendohn indicates that around 12,400 people use the offers of Vienna's homeless aid annually, around 3,000 of them in emergency quarters and 1,800 in chances. This information is crucial in order to further develop the effective help in the city, whereby the growing needs of those affected must always be the focus, as in a report by