A census being conducted in Winnipeg today is trying to make the voices of people experiencing homelessness heard.

More than 300 volunteers and community organizations are taking part in Winnipeg's second street census. According to streetcensuswpg.ca, there are two main ways information is gathered: volunteers survey people experiencing homelessness face-to-face, and organizations and government agencies provide data. The census is a community-based research project, and its findings are used to improve decision making for governments and organizations, as well as to track progress on ending homelessness.

"We know that there are a lot of folks living out on the street and they don't normally get included in a regular census, and so their voices aren't heard," says Rebecca Blaikie, director of community services Mount Carmel Clinic.

Al Wiebe is the chair of the Lived Experience Circle. He says he spent two years on the street. He says it's important to have accurate numbers, and he says this brings about awareness.

"This brings every day people face-to-face with people who are experiencing homelessness, and they are folks just like you and just like me, and when I speak about it I say, 'They have names like Al and Rebecca,'" said Wiebe this morning; he and Blaikie were at the Main Street Project office, Winnipeg's Street Census volunteer headquarters.

Volunteers set out this morning, and through the day will visit social service locations and popular hang-outs like libraries; tonight, volunteers will walk designated paths in groups.

This is Winnipeg's second street census. The first was in October 2015. Volunteer coordinator Brent Retzlaff says it's supposed to occur every two years, but they pushed it back a bit here to align with the national count. The census is funded by the Government of Canada Homelessness Partnering Strategy administered through the City of Winnipeg, it's coordinated by the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg in partnership with a couple dozen community partners.

Winnipeg's first street census found at least 1,400 people were experiencing homelessness on October 25-26, 2015. 479 of them were experiencing "absolute homelessness," and 921 people had were "provisionally accomodated." The median age of the people found to be experiencing homelessness over that 24-hour period was 43. 225 people experiencing homelessness were under the age of 30.