Habitat for Humanity's Commitment to Safeguarding and Welfare

At Habitat for Humanity, we do not tolerate sexual exploitation, abuse or harassment. The safety and well-being of the people in the communities where we work, as well as our volunteers and partners, are our top priority. The principles of our Safeguarding Policy outline the protection and care mechanisms with which we work. 

Habitat promotes a culture of accountability. We empower our employees and community members to report incidents of exploitation, abuse and harassment. This includes using our confidential reporting system, the Habitat Ethics and Accountability Line. Anyone who files a report or acts as a witness will be protected.

We are committed to constantly improving our incident reporting systems. Despite our efforts, we recognize the need to continue strengthening our training programs, as well as the selection process for staff and volunteers.

Our commitment to continuous improvement drives us to regularly update our Safeguarding Policy, considering input from strategic groups. 

We have expanded our team of safeguarding specialists globally and intensified training for our employees and partners. In addition, we collaborate with like-minded organizations to develop the Community-Based Safeguarding Visual Toolkit, a set of resources designed to convey safeguarding messages to the communities in which we operate, while overcoming language, literacy and accessibility barriers.

Our dedication to preventing sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment is unwavering. At Habitat for Humanity, we believe that protection is not a final destination, but an ongoing process that requires humility to improve, courage to speak up for collective safety, and accountability to maintain the trust of the communities we serve.

Our mission calls us to serve those who need it most. It is imperative that everyone in our ecosystem feels safe so that, together, we can build a world where everyone has a decent place to live.