There are now 150 million homeless people in the world, that is, two percent of the world's population. Another 1.6 billion people, 20 percent of the world's population, do not have a suitable home to live in. According to ESRI, the most homeless city is Manila in the Philippines. The second city in terms of the number of homeless people is New York.

The problem has now reached such proportions that researchers have begun to identify new types among the homeless. The cyber homeless are people who sleep in cyber cafes 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This phenomenon originated in Japan. Like the cyber homeless, the Mac homeless are those who sleep in a 24-hour McDonald’s. In addition, the inhabitants of the tunnels stand out: they are people who live in abandoned subway stations, in railway tunnels, sewers and other underground structures.

The main causes of homelessness are unemployment, low incomes unable to pay rent, destruction of homes due to natural disasters, domestic violence, and mental illness. Alcohol and drug abuse in most cases is not a cause but a consequence of homelessness. Homelessness increases significantly faster in societies where members spend more than 32 percent of their income on rent, according to a Zillow study. According to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Center, 14 million people lose a roof over their heads each year due to natural disasters.

World’s Big Sleep Out will take place on December 7 in various cities in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. This event takes place in central squares of the city such as Trafalgar Square in London and Times Square in New York. Thousands of participants spend a night on the street in solidarity with the homeless. Actors and musicians perform at Sleep Out, and the money raised from ticket sales goes to help those who always hang out at night. More than 50 cities take part in the action.

Backpack Bed in Australia distributes lightweight, collapsible sleeping bags for the homeless that can be carried as a backpack. They are protected from the wind and insects, support up to 20 kilograms of weight and have a secret pocket where you can hide valuables. One of the problems of homeless people is that their mobile phones and other essential items are often stolen. And the Irish National Ex-Service Personnel Organization distributes sleeping bags in the colors of the national flag to homeless veterans.

In Scotland, locals leave warm jackets on street lamps for the homeless in winter. To let people know who the clothes are for, they hang notes on their jackets. In Hamburg, homemade scarves are tied in the trees for the homeless. And in Frankfurt, a local designer gives them their own tailored jackets that can be turned into a tent, bag or hammock.