Acknowledging the scale of the crisis While advances have been made, we still face an urgent housing crisis that has been caused by decades of institutional neglect, including a failure to recognise or give effect to our human right to a decent home. The crisis was recognised at the international level in February 2020 when Leilani Farha, then the United Nations Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, visited Aotearoa. As she put it, “the housing crisis confronting New Zealand is a human rights crisis that must be addressed urgently”.12 In addition, the reports and findings of our Inquiry have highlighted issues that those in frontline services, and those with experience of homelessness and housing insecurity, have spent years calling out. In this report, we identify practical ways in which human rights can contribute to the work ahead. Human rights as a tool for change In the chapters that follow, we offer specific and practical guidance for two different sets of stakeholders: policy makers, and individuals, communities, and housing advocates. Each of the chapters can be read as stand-alone guidance, and each is acknowledged to be a work in progress – they will be revised and improved by policy makers and practitioners in light of experience. Chapter 2 provides guidance for policy makers in embedding human rights throughout the policy development cycle. It is intended to help policy makers introduce a human rights lens early in the policy cycle and, in this way, reinforce their design and delivery of effective, evidence-informed, equitable policy objectives. Chapter 3 is designed to be accessible and relevant to members of the public, community groups and organisations who seek to advocate 12 Human Rights Commission for the right to a decent home. It provides a clear explanation on how international human rights tools, in combination with te Tiriti o Waitangi, can be used in advocacy in the housing context. It is directed at those who would like to explore how to use a human rights approach to challenge poor housing conditions. However, it is useful reading for anyone seeking a clear and accessible interpretation of our foundational report Aratohu Tika Tangata ki te Whai Whare Rawaka I Aotearoa: Framework Guidelines on the Right to a Decent Home in Aotearoa. In Appendix C, we have included a toolkit with further resources to help people understand the right to a decent home, support and strengthen housing advocacy, and guide housing providers and developers on how the human right can be upheld in their work.