David J. Amaral

I am a researcher and strategic adviser working to improve homelessness policy, governance, and response system performance with evidence and research-based best practices.

I currently serve as Director of Research and Evaluation at All Home where I lead a team tasked with providing technical assistance to improve homelessness-related planning, public policy, and program design in jurisdictions across the Bay Area. I previously served as policy analyst for homelessness at the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) and led community-engaged research on food insecurity for the Blum Center on Poverty, Social Enterprise, and Participatory Governance.

I received my PhD in politics from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and wrote my dissertation Shelter and the Storm: the local politics of homelessness in urban California on homeless policy and governance in L.A. and San Francisco.

My research has been published in the Urban Affairs Review and supported by the Horowitz Foundation for Social Policy.

Prior to graduate school, I managed education programming for a nonprofit arts organization in Chicago, seeking to expand arts education opportunities to historically under-resourced schools, neighborhoods, and communities.

Areas of Expertise

Research & Policy Analysis

Extensive experience designing and conducting research ventures, analyzing public policy and the political environments and processes from which they emerge; expertise in homeless policy and urban politics.

Communication

Practiced ability to clearly, accurately synthesize complex research into salient takeaways; excellent written and verbal communication skills; engaging presenter.

Collaborative Partnership

Experience forging collaborative partnerships with governing boards and direct service providers, academics and equity advocates.

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