Inside America’s Homeless Crisis: Policy, Reality & the Stories We Ignore - Donald Whitehead Jr. - Executive Director, National Coalition for the Homeless; Valerio Zanoli - Award-Winning Filmmaker and Social Entrepreneur

Episode notes

Send us Fan Mail On any given night, more than 750,000 people are homeless in America - but that number doesn’t even begin to tell the full story. Today’s conversation sits at the intersection of advocacy, lived experience, and storytelling - because ending homelessness isn’t just a policy challenge, it’s a human one. Our first guest, Donald Whitehead Jr., is one of the leading voices in the fight to end homelessness in America. As Executive Director of the National Coalition for the Homeless ( ), he brings more than 25 years of frontline and leadership experience across housing, recovery, and social services. But Donald’s work is also deeply personal - having experienced homelessness and addiction himself, he now helps shape national policy, elevate lived voices, and push for a more equitable system rooted in dignity and justice. Joining him is Valerio Zanoli ( ), an award-winning filmmaker and social entrepreneur who believes cinema can be a force for change. His latest documentary, HOMELESS ( ), goes beyond statistics to humanize the experience of homelessness - exploring the stories, dreams, and resilience of people too often overlooked.

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