In an increasingly globalized and interconnected world, the field of social work requires an international perspective to address the most pressing social issues of our time. As international events directly and indirectly impact clients’ health and well-being, social workers must be able to think globally yet act at the local level.
One way to incorporate an international perspective into social work practice is to collaborate with social work professionals around the globe. On November 29th, 2017, three social work professionals from Fundación Tierra de Esperanza (FTE) in Chile visited Bryn Mawr College, Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research (GSSWSR) and the Philadelphia area. Together, GSSWSR, BMC, and FTE hope to enhance opportunities for international social work and engage in cross-cultural learning and social work practice.
The four-day visit included a variety of events including an interdisciplinary panel with a focus on Chilean and U.S. social work practices, a cross-cultural psychology class, a meeting at NYU’s Population Center with the ParentCorps Intervention team, and planning for future collaborations and exchanges.
Through this visit, GSSWSR and FTE seek to engage our respective communities in thinking globally and acting locally to improve social worker preparation and practice and incorporate an international perspective.
- Carolina Hausmann-Stabile, PhD, Faculty Member at GSSWSR