According to Yale University, it is estimated that there are around 150 million homeless people around the world. That’s two percent of the world’s population. In Sweden, the estimated number of homeless people is 33,000, which serves as proof that homelessness is a problem for wealthy nations as well as poor.

Homelessness is largely an urban problem. For the last hundred years, billions of people have moved from the countryside into the world’s cities to look for work and shelter, and some people argue that homelessness is a problem that can never be solved, since the cities can never build enough housing for everyone.

A lot of people seem to think that being homeless is the result of a series of bad choices. He or she chose to start using drugs, he or she didn’t want to work etc. In reality, this is rarely the case. Most of the homeless people you see in the streets have once lead normal lives. They’ve had ordinary jobs, a family, friends and a bright future.

But things happen. Someone gets sick, someone experiences the loss of someone close to them. For various reasons, people break down from time to time, and can’t cope with day-to-day life. Most of the time, they get help from loved ones, or from society. But some people don’t, or the help they’re given is not enough. Being in a downward spiral is tough, especially when you are weak and vulnerable. Some people end up in the street, where they are looked upon by the rest of us as somebody who has him- or herself to blame. This is a terrible situation, and a lot of people look to drugs and alcohol to ease the pain, which of course makes the situation even worse.