Abt Associates is recognized for its deep expertise in homelessness and housing. We pioneered the methodology to measure homelessness across the country, and since 2007, we have collected and analyzed data for the Annual Housing Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress. The 2019 AHAR revealed mixed findings. Although family homelessness declined by 5 percent, the number of individuals experiencing homelessness without shelter increased sharply, by 9 percent.
Communities’ responses to homelessness depend on having localized data to make informed decisions. Working with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Abt developed a data visualization tool, Stella Performance, that enables local data analysis to examine length of time homeless, exits to permanent destinations, and returns to homelessness.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
Stella Performance Data Indicator
Housing availability is a social determinant of economic mobility and overall well-being. In a recent groundbreaking study, Abt evaluated whether calibrating Housing Choice Vouchers (rental assistance) to ZIP code average rents, rather than a metropolitan area average, would give households receiving the subsidy access to areas of higher opportunity without significantly raising overall subsidy costs. Our evaluation found that the recalibration resulted in more voucher holders, including families with children, moving to high opportunity ZIP codes (with lower poverty rates, higher proficiency schools, and lower environmental hazards). This research, together with recent literature on the long-term effects of children living in high-opportunity neighborhoods, suggests that implementing zip-code calibrated rental assistance may improve intergenerational economic mobility for low-income families receiving housing choice vouchers.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
Evaluation of the Small Area Fair Market Rent Demonstration (SAFMR)
Harnessing women’s economic potential creates jobs, drives economic growth, and transforms economies. It also can increase women’s agency in their families and communities. In South East Asia, leading Investing in Women (IW)—Australia Government's flagship initiative—Abt developed an effective approach to target impact investors, which has nearly tripled the private financing available to 27 women-owned businesses to date.
Australia Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)
Investing in Women (IW)
Many of Abt’s projects promote women’s economic empowerment—from advancing health to clean energy. In 2019, Abt hired more than 16,000 women in 14 African countries to control malaria as skilled indoor residual sprayers, a traditionally male occupation. Of these, 1,670 women work as supervisors. In South East Asia, Abt sponsored nearly 40 women to participate in the region's preeminent clean energy forum, enhancing their ability to drive change in this male-dominated field.
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
PMI VectorLink
Clean Power Asia
Egyptian smallholder farmers have excellent growing conditions, and their high-value crops should be easy to export. But barriers, such as fragmented supply chains and inefficient logistics, inhibit the potential. Building on work in other countries to strengthen market linkages, Abt has developed a buyer-led approach to overcome these barriers. An innovative pilot with PepsiCo and potato farmers illustrates the approach in action. Through producer organizations, we linked 150 farmers with PepsiCo and helped PepsiCo see the value of improved quality and traceability from contracting with the producer organizations directly, rather than through traders. We also provided technical assistance to the organizations. Farmers saw increased productivity and net income along with decreased pesticide and fertilizer use. We hope to expand the effort to more villages going forward.
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Egypt Rural Agribusiness Project