Mike Bulthuis, Senior Associate
For the past 20 years, Mike has worked at the intersections of social policy, community development and urban social research. In 2017, he became the Director of the Youth Homelessness Social Innovation Lab at the Canadian Observatory of Homelessness. Prior to this, Mike served as the Executive Director of the Alliance to End Homelessness Ottawa – a non-partisan, non-profit organization working in partnership to inspire action, to generate knowledge and to inform a community-wide effort to achieve an end to homelessness in Ottawa. H also spent time in policy development with the federal public service, addressing homelessness, urban sustainability and infrastructure.
As an independent consultant, Mike has contributed to system-level policy and program supports alongside numerous poverty reduction and community development initiatives, both locally and nationally. From 2006-2011, Mike pursued doctoral studies in social geography, where he participated in numerous Faculty-led and community-driven research initiatives, while also teaching at the undergraduate level.
In his own neighbourhood, he is a passionate community advocate, volunteering through his local community association, co-developing a community garden, and co-founding a local blog, VanierNow, as a space to reflect on a changing neighbourhood.
mike.bulthuis(at)habitusresearch.ca