HOME-RL was initially founded as the Laboratory for Housing & Mental Health (LHAMH) at UNB-SJ in 2019 by Dr. Julia Woodhall-Melnik. LHAMH was a smaller research group consisting of one investigator, part- time staff and undergraduate students focused on solutions to homelessness, climate and housing and the mental health of individuals who wait for and access public/social housing. In 2020, LHAMH was redeveloped into HOME-RL to more closely align with Dr. Woodhall-Melnik’s focus on housing, community resilience, health and inclusion, youth housing, the impact of changing climates on housing, experiential education, and community-based research methodologies. In 2021, Dr. Woodhall-Melnik received a Canada Research Chair in Resilient Communities, recognizing her outstanding research skills as an emerging scholar. Dr. Woodhall-Melnik was also awarded a Canadian Foundation for Innovation grant to add critical infrastructure to the lab and in 2022, HOME-RL moved into its custom designed space in the Annex at UNB. Dr. Woodhall-Melnik was also awarded the CMHC President’s Medal, an honour awarded to Canadian housing scholars making significant contributions in housing academics.

In 2022, Dr. Tobin LeBlanc Haley joined the Department of Social Sciences at UNB. As a leading scholar and recognized expert in community-engaged scholarship, critical policy analysis, the political economy of housing, and disability, Dr. LeBlanc Haley joined the lab as a Co-Director and Principal Investigator in the Summer of 2023. Dr. LeBlanc Haley brought a number of externally funded research projects with her, including a study of the context of homelessness in rural-urban spaces in Ontario. Since joining the lab, she has helped foster important community connections, and her current research focus on the housing needs of adults with an intellectual or developmental disability is bringing much-needed attention to this important issue. Her research has made significant contributions to New Brunswick housing policy, including the development of a provincially-run rent bank. Dr. LeBlanc Haley’s New Brunswick roots also contribute a vital understanding of housing in rural-urban spaces in Canada.

HOME-RL now engages a variety of full and part-time staff, post-doctoral fellows, graduate students and undergraduate students in cutting edge work on housing and housing policy. HOME-RL is a leader in student training and engagement and strives to uphold the principles of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in all their work.