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Creating a Space for the Stories of the Homeless with Russell Clair of The Homeless Podcast

Feb 20, 2020 • E38 • 00:30:46

The issue of homelessness is one that is gaining more and more attention in mainstream media but not something that we have touched on here at Causepods yet. Today we are joined by Russell Clair to talk about his new podcast called the Homeless Podcast, in which he interviews and shares the stories of people who are currently living on the street for a variety of reasons. Russell's goal with the show is to share the lives of people who are so often forgotten and ignored.

Russell emphasizes the common desire of his guests to just be heard and treated like any other human being. The different reasons that people end up without a physical home might come as a surprise to certain listeners and it was only by asking and taking an interest that Russell learned certain things and realized certain truths. These are the things he thinks are worth sharing with the world and he hopes to get out to a larger audience.

The love of podcasting has been in Russell for some time now and it suddenly clicked when he saw the need for the telling of these stories that he could align these two passions. Having studied music and recording, there was not much of a learning curve and the only challenges he notes are around marketing and building a bigger listenership. With the world of podcasting still growing, there is continually possibilities and markets to service and Russell has seen in his travels how many of his guests and acquaintances are familiar with the world of podcasting, so it makes perfect sense to make that the repository of the stories he collects.

In our conversation, Russell shares his thoughts on regional homeless issues, the cyclical nature of life on the street and some of the disturbing realities that those without a steady place to live face. He also gets into the ins and outs of how he approaches people, makes space for them to share, and aims to give them some care and attention when needed. For all this be sure to listen in for this great episode of Causepods!

Key Topics:

• Reasons that Russell wanted to work to help the homeless. (01:15)

• Shocking facts about homeless income and social security. (04:10)

• The different types of people you might find without a home. (06:58)

• The self-sustaining and cyclical nature of life on the street. (09:04)

• Approaching people to share their stories and how Russell goes about it. (10:42)

• Russell's love of podcasting and true crime stories! (15:03)

• Challenges that Russell has faced getting his show off the ground. (16:04)

• The prevalence of podcasts and how commonplace they have become. (17:50)

• Russell's guests' hopes of being heard at the end of an interview. (18:31)

• A charity of choice from Russell and why he has chosen to focus on it. (20:47)

• The regional issues that arise within the broader problem of homelessness. (24:49)