Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you to the witnesses today for their testimony.
I'm just going to take a quick moment to highlight some challenges that one of the first nations in my riding, Walpole Island First Nation, has faced in housing. They've had many struggles for years, and 90% of homes on the island can't access natural gas. It forces them to use more expensive propane to heat their homes.
I've also heard from Walpole Island about the struggles of the rising costs of building supplies due to inflation and what that does when they're trying to renovate their homes up to just the minimum standards or when building new structures. The infrastructure gap is wide here too. Land is available for development, but it doesn't have basic services like power, water and sewer available, which have to be added before the land can be developed.
Ms. Child, I know your organization focuses on Vancouver Island, but I see a lot of parallels with indigenous communities in my riding. The Walpole Island and Kettle & Stony Point first nations have all struggled with the opioid epidemic, and they're working to help their communities recover. I'm wondering what kind of impact access to stable housing has on helping address the opioid crisis and alleviate homelessness. Can you maybe tell us what your organization has done that has worked? Also, could you share some success stories?