Give a HandUp to Homeless with Rose Broome

What's the best and most efficient way to end homelessness? What if we could do it with the help of technology... and even make a profit while doing it? Our guest is Rose Broome.

Rose Broome, HandUp

Rose Broome is co-founder and CEO of HandUp, a corporation based on the premise that it’s better to give a hand up than a handout -- a principle that also forms the foundation for Billions Rising.

One cold night in San Francisco, Broome noticed a homeless woman living on the street and started to ponder what types of services were available to help people in need get crucial items for survival, like food and personal hygiene products. That thought led to the foundation of HandUp, a for-profit benefit corporation that partners with charities and city services in San Francisco to directly help the homeless and the poor.

It's like a membership site for people in need of food, money or shelter, where donors can send funds to recipients online or through SMS.

Rose sees HandUp as a tool to solve homelessness through a for-profit venture. The Bay Area is a perfect place to use this tool because of its technologically-advanced population, large number of people that need help, and millions of dollars in government aid.

And since charity isn't enough to solve the seemingly insurmountable issue of homelessness, this equivalent of a privately-run Food Stamps program may just be a big part of the answer.

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