Airbnb co-founder donates $25mn to curb homelessness in San Francisco

San Francisco: San Francisco Mayor London Breed has announced a $25 million donation from Airbnb co-Founder Joe Gebbia to tackle homelessness in the US city and support families and individuals facing economic hardship due to the raging Covid-19 pandemic.

The donation was made to the 'Rising Up' campaign, a public-private partnership launched by Breed with the goal of raising $35 million to reduce youth homelessness in San Francisco by 50 per cent by 2023.

To date the organisation has raised $17 million in private and public donations.

Gebbia's donation will help the organisation get closer to its $35 million funding goal and directly support Rising Up's partnership with Larkin Street Youth Services to cover rent subsidies, education and employment services, and staffing to help young people experiencing homelessness develop self-sufficiency.

"As we recover from this pandemic, we have an opportunity to lift thousands of people out of homelessness and change lives, but the City can't do this alone," Xinhua news agency quoted Breed as saying in her announcement on Wednesday.

"We need the partnership of organisations like Larkin Street Youth and All Home, as well as the support of our philanthropic community," she added.

In a statement, Gebbia, who is also the chief product officer of Airbnb, said: "The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated the needs of our communities and it's incumbent on all of us to do our part to help.

"I am proud to support the work Rising Up-Larkin Street Youth Services and All Home are doing to improve the lives of so many during these difficult times."

Gebbia's donation will also amplify All Home's work at a time when the San Francisco community needs it most.

As rent bills pile up, All Home will launch a first of its kind regional homelessness prevention system to reduce the number of people becoming unsheltered in the Bay Area, according to the announcement.

Gebbia's donation comes in the wake of the recent launch of Airbnb.org, a new non-profit that enables hosts on Airbnb to house people in times of crisis.

To date, the Airbnb.org community has helped over 75,000 people in need find temporary housing.