When We Walk By: The Workbook

“Humane and deeply practical, When We Walk By: The Workbook is a vital corrective to the many cruel, stigmatizing myths that surround homelessness. Kevin F. Adler and Donald W. Burnes show how structural neglect, frayed relationships, and everyday acts of avoidance allow this crisis to persist—and invite readers into the harder, more hopeful work of seeing clearly and acting differently. This is an urgently important book.”
—Brian Goldstone, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of There Is No Place for Us

“A practical, profound tool for readers to delve more deeply into the crisis of homelessness and their own human responses to it. Anyone who takes the time to walk slowly through this 30-day journey will be transformed by it.”
—Jeff Olivet, former executive director of the US Interagency Council on Homelessness

“This valuable workbook invites readers to engage and reflect on the complex phenomenon of homelessness. Relying on the voices of people with lived experience of homelessness and empirical evidence, this resource skillfully provides a thoughtful and compassionate road map for engagement.”
—Gregg Colburn, coauthor of Homelessness Is a Housing Problem

“An essential tool to guide groups in growing their awareness and understanding of people experiencing homelessness…. The workbook and book together are for service providers, community groups, religious organizations, classrooms, and individuals. As a college professor, I plan to use the resources of When We Walk By and its workbook with colleagues, in my classes, and in cocurricular groups that can take what we learn and put it into action in our community.”
—Virginia Parish Beard, MPPA, PhD, professor of political science at Hope College and author of Housing: The Evolution of Beliefs, Politics, and Policies

“In the midst of an increasingly grim societal narrative about homelessness, Adler and Burnes courageously nudge us to envision a brighter and more hopeful future. We should all listen to them. Their workbook offers daily reflection questions that prompt us to reconsider our individual commitments to rebuilding a more caring society. Walking by unhoused people on the street only deepens the problem. We can instead pause, connect, open our hearts, and dare to be part of the solution.”
—Howard Koh, MD, MPH, Chair of the Initiative on Health and Homelessness at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and former US assistant secretary for health

“This workbook will be a phenomenal companion as we continue to become better informed through both statistics and narratives of lived experiences, engage in the hard work of creating positive change, and remain thoughtful about our actions moving forward.”
—Ann Brandon, English instructor at Clovis Community College, Fresno, CA

“In an increasingly divisive society that is constantly searching for ways to divide ‘us’ from ‘them,’ When We Walk By and this companion workbook poignantly remind us of our shared humanity and the fact that our neighbors are our neighbors whether they have a home or not…. Whether it is used in the classroom, in the workplace, or simply for personal development, this workbook is the perfect resource for anyone with the desire to grow—which should be all of us.”
—Emily Beglarian, PHD, MPH, public health researcher and clinical assistant professor at Loyola Marymount University

Kevin F. Adler is an award-winning social entrepreneur, nonprofit leader, and author. Since 2014, Kevin has served as the Founder and CEO of Miracle Messages, a nonprofit organization that helps people experiencing homelessness rebuild their social support systems and financial security. He holds a Masters in Sociology from the University of Cambridge and a Bachelors in Politics from Occidental College. In his work on homelessness, he has pioneered the concept of “relational poverty” as an overlooked form of poverty severely affecting unhoused individuals. He previously co-authored When We Walk By and authored Natural Disasters as a Catalyst for Social Capital.

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.