International Conference 2024 | Voices for Change - Social Work and Activism

The 10th International Conference on Social Work in Health and Mental Health (ICSWHMH) was held in November 2024 in Melbourne. This significant event in successfully brought together social work professionals, researchers, educators, and students from around the world to discuss and share the latest developments in the field of social work in health and mental health.

Recording 1

Political Activism is a Core Social Work Domain. A Call to Teach Civics to Clients, Communities and Social Work Students. Let's Build Justice Through Democracy

Presenter: Ms Emily Bieber (Australia, VIC)

This presentation explores the critical role of politics in social work practice and advocating for political engagement to address systemic issues affecting clients. The discussion covers civic education, democratic participation, and the impact of policy on vulnerable populations, offering practical strategies for social workers to become politically active and advocate for change.

Recording 2

Promoting Women’s Voices: Understanding the Online Opportunities and Risks Faced by Women in Activism

Presenters: Dr Rojan Afrouz (Australia, VIC) & Dr Kim Robinson (Australia, VIC)

Digital platforms provide a unique avenue for feminist activists to cultivate collective action, amplify their voices and connect with the global community to dismantle the patriarchy. To explore this further, a small-scale study was conducted to explore opportunities and risks for activists on gender justice through online platforms. The research employed a mixed-method design, including an online Qualtrics survey with a follow-up semi-structured interview option. 62 surveys were completed, and eight semi-structured interviews were conducted, transcribed, and analysed.

The study found that online platforms significantly increased the opportunities for women’s activism and increased women’s knowledge of women’s rights and gender justice. However, online abuse, trolling, threats, and harassment also impacted the health, safety, and well-being of activists and their decision whether to continue their activism. The negative impacts of online abuse, including mental health challenges, safety concerns, and threats of violence, are not often taken seriously in legislation, policies and support systems.

Participants indicated that reporting abuse is only the first step to acting against online abuse and longer-term, sustainable and effective measures to maintain safety are needed. As such, women activists’ lived experiences, voices, and experiences must be brought to the table when designing services, programs and policies.