At Solid Ground, we understand that we can’t end poverty unless we reform the oppressive systems that make it impossible for too many of us to attain financial stability for ourselves and our families. And we know that the people who best understand those systems are those most impacted by them.

That’s why our advocacy partner, Statewide Poverty Action Network, holds Listening Sessions across Washington state every other year to ask people living in poverty what they need most from lawmakers in Olympia. In the most recent listening sessions, held last summer and fall, we heard five major themes:

• High Costs of Living
• Barriers to Entry and Difficulty Navigating Benefits Systems
• “Debt Sucks”
• Free Spaces and Activities for Youth
• Public Safety

Click on the graphics  below to see the main themes that emerged from the Ellensburg, High Point, Skagit, and Spokane sessions. You can also read more in Listening Sessions 2023: Key Themes Across The State on the Poverty Action blog.

Ellensburg & High Point

Skagit & Spokane

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