Global Events
Conferences, seminars and event news
Conferences are essential to people working in welfare and development who are seeking a global perspective.
People who attend ICSW and related conferences include practitioners, consumers of services, professionals, managers, academics, government ministers, politicians, government officers and policy advisers.
SWSD 2026 Kenya
SWSD 2026 Kenya
SWSD Panama 2024
The International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW), the International Council on Social Welfare (ICSW) and the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) are delighted to launch the theme for the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development 2024: “Buen Vivir: Shared Future for Transformative Change“. The theme will also be presented at the 2024 World Conference on Social Work and Social Development in Panama.
SWESD 2022
OVERVIEW OF THE CONFERENCE
Title: Joint World Conference On Social Work Education and Social Development 2022
Theme: Redefining Social Policy and Social Work Practice in A Post-Pandemic Society: Social Welfare Programs and Social Work Education at A Crossroads
Date: October 26-28, 2022
Method: Largely Online with Partial Offline Events for Opening and Closing Ceremonies
Official Language: English
Organized by: ICSW, IASSW and KNCSW
Abstract:
Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 all around the world, we are now facing newly emerging social problems and social demands. Inequality, exclusion, discrimination, global unemployment and food insecurity has been intensified, and it is expected to be increased even more as the COVID-19 pandemic continues for over two years. Considering the changing environment of the global society, the title for 2022 SWESD conference is “Redefining social policy and social work practice in a post-pandemic society: Social welfare programs and social work education at a crossroads.” In the face of the pandemic era caused by COVID-19, and in preparation for a post-pandemic society, we would like to discuss what new social problems are emerging and what political, educational and practical strategies social workers, social work educators and social welfare institutions should establish to solve sodial problems and social demands of citizens.
International Social Work Education and Development, ISWED 2021
International Social Work Education and Development, ISWED 2021
After the cancellation of Rimini Joint World Conference 2020, International Social Work Education and Development (ISWED 2021) Online conference was conceived under the co-chairship of ICSW Vice President Prof. P.K. Shajahan and IASSW Treasurer Prof. Tan Ngoh Tiong.
ISWED 2021 spanned across 4 months (January – April 2021) in three sessions brought together social workers, social development organizations and social policy practitioners to make an impact on the lives of people and societies in the midst of incredible changes brought forth by the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Amidst the backdrop of the global humanitarian crisis, ISWED 2021 was organized under the broad theme of "Human Relationships: Keys to Remaking Social Work for the Future". It consisted of 3 parts:
- Kick-off plenary in January,
- Workshops, symposium and presentation in March and
- Oral presentations and student sessions in April.
The conference gave an opportunity to bring extremely powerful and impactful deliberations by a host of keynote and plenary speakers across the three sessions. It also reinforced ongoing collaboration between IASSW and ICSW as global partners in promoting Social Work and Social Development across the globe.
International seminar on ICT
As part of our contribution to the debate on social welfare, in May we organized an international seminar on ICTs and social welfare with an innovative design involving the regional members of the ICSW. The aim of this international seminar was precisely to discuss problems and challenges such as protection of citizens’ rights, services, digital rights, digital intervention and digital skills in greater depth and examine the role of ICTs in achieving social inclusion and social welfare, as well as country cases of successful ICT applications in the field of social welfare.
The seminar drew experts from various areas of knowledge related to ICTs and welfare and practical cases were presented of digital inclusion in countries around the world, among them India, Korea, Brazil, the USA, Spain, Portugal, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Zimbabwe, and Morocco. During this session, panelists addressed key themes of social welfare and digital inclusion: from intergenerational inclusion, surveillance capitalism, public participation and empowerment of marginalized populations in a digital society, to digital mental health and social work intervention, social work research and community social work in a digital era, and online social work education.
International seminar on Food Insecurity in Africa
In September, in accordance with a renewed emphasis on African development and existing challenges the ICSW organized online international conference to explore food insecurity in Africa and outline strategies for ensuring child-sensitive social protection. It is a cooperative project, based on co-design and the participation of all the actors involved. I would like to thank our regional presidents from the African regions, who participated from the very beginning in the meeting we held on March 15 to design the contents of this conference. As with the Newsletter, the involvement of all ICSW members in the design and implementation of the activities that take place each year is very important to ICSW. Knowledge and strategies to deal with social problems must be based on the involvement of those affected, giving a voice to the protagonists of social change from the outset. The conference brought together scholars and practitioners from Argentina, Cameroon, Germany, India, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Spain, UK and USA, as well as international organizations such as UNICEF, IFAD and ILO.
In their presentations the participants aimed at better understanding of the multidimensional nature of the challenge of food insecurity and its complex impact on children. Many innovative solutions were put forward in order to facilitate concerted actions and better targeting of interventions by national governments, international bodies and civil society organizations. The conference provided perspective on areas of particular importance, including the role of key stakeholders and their interactions. The sessions also addressed conceptual and general issues pertinent to food insecurity in Africa, efforts aimed at strengthening cooperation with various stakeholders and strategies to improve capacity development and national case studies and best practices.
International seminar on Social Protection in the Post-COVID19 Era
ICSW hosted its last seminar of 2021 on November 3~5 entitled “New issues in social protection in the post-COVID19 era.” The conjunction of the COVID-19 pandemic and technological advance calls for new measures against abrupt disconnections from the former way of life and accelerates an introduction of an entirely new way of life in every aspect of our society. Accordingly, this seminar aimed to discuss roles and tasks of government, market and civil society regarding new issues in the post-COVID19 era.
On the first day of the seminar, we had three keynote speakers: Neil Gilbert, Jennifer Splansky Juster and Alex Nicholls to share each stories about the roles of government, business and civil society. There was also session and panel discussion on the Universal Basic Income with actual cases from Finland and India to share the experiences, strategies and way forward of UBI in the post-COVID19 era. On the second day, we had speakers from large companies in Korea to listen to their cases of Corporate Social Responsibility activities in pursuing social values in the community. We also invited several experts including Lisa Mcllvenna from ‘Business in the Community’ to deliver the role of business and the way forward of CSR activities in the post-COVID-19 era.
Lastly, invited speakers in the ‘Social Protection and Civil Society’ session delivered their presentation about the current situation of civil society and how the cooperation of public and private, civil society should look like in the future to respond to the COVID-19.
Previous Events
Past global events provides links to past ICSW conferences. Please note that some links to external sources may no longer be available
2018 Global Events
2016 Global Events
2014 Global Events
- July 9 - 12 Joint World Congress on Social Work, Education and Social Development held in Melbourne, Australia
2012 Global Events
- July 8 - 12 IASSW, ICSW and IFSW Biennial Joint World Conference, Stockholm
- May 28 - June 1 IFA 11th Global Conference on Ageing, Prague, Czech Republic
2011 Global Events
- October 20 - 21 Reforming Social Protection Systems in Developing Countries - Determinants and Strategies of Institutional Change, Bochum, Germany
2010 Global Events
- October 4 - 9 The Settlement Summit: Inclusion, Innovation, Impact, 2010 Joint Conference, New York City
- September 13 - 17 International Summer School on "Global Crisis, Welfare Responses and Social Inequalities", Turin, Italy
- June 10 - 15 IASSW, ICSW and IFSW 2010 Joint World Conference on Social Work and Social Development : The Agenda Hong Kong
2010 Joint World Conference
ICSW in the June 2010 Joint World Conference held in Hong Kong conducted a pre-conference workshop. The workshop was co-sponsored by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the Hong Kong Council of Social Service. The Social Welfare Department HKSAR Government provided generous financial support.
- Pre-conference workshop Programme
- 1. Welcoming remarks and the Hong Kong experience The Honourable Matthew CHEUNG Kin-chung, GBS, JP, Secretary for Labour and Welfare HKSAR Government
- 2. Le Socle universel de protection sociale - Un concept novateur qui est en train de faire la différence
- 2. social protection floor initiative - the perspective of ILO
- 3. social protection floor initiative - the experience of Thailand
- 4. Economic crises and the welfare state in Korea - Reforms and future challenges (doc)
- 4. Economic crises and the welfare state in Korea - Reforms and future challenges (ppt)
- 5. Global social protection floor - Perspectives and experiences of OECD-POVNET and Finland
- 6. The role of the UN and UN agencies in the initiative
- 7. Social Protection in the context of a recovery with a human face
- 8. Social Protection in Africa: an Overview of the Challenges (doc)
- 8. Social Protection in Africa: an Overview of the Challenges (ppt)
- 9. Social Cash Transfer as a Tool for Social Protection
2009 Global Events
- AIEJI XVII world congress (International Association of Social Educators), Copenhagen/Denmark
2008 Global Events
- 33rd Global Conference of ICSW, Tours, France 2008
33ème Conférence Mondiale du CIAS, Tours, France 2008
2006 Global Events
2004 Global Events
- ICSW 31st Global Conference on Social Welfare, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia<
2002 Global Events
- ICSW 30th Global Conference on Social Welfare, Rotterdam, Netherlands
2000 Global Events
- ICSW 29th Global Conference on Social Welfare, Cape Town, South Africa
1998 Global Events
- ICSW 28th Global Conference on Social Welfare, Jerusalem, Israel
1994 Global Events