We develop research-informed education and educational materials that supports future welfare professionals’ competences of directly supporting active urban citizenship thus contributing to socially and environmentally sustainable cities.
The main objective of the project is to train social work students to become agents of change for sustainable cities. This directly addresses the HE priority of ‘Stimulating innovative learning and teaching practice.’
In the work packages, the knowledge and competences of each partner are utilized to achieve the specific objectives: to produce knowledge, teaching materials and communication tools that will bring pan-European inspiration to local settings.
Research-based cases, a game and a collection of digital educational materials, a communication concept and handbook called VISION, and a series of competence development activities for educators (WP 5)—will enable educators and practitioners of social work to enhance their focus on participation, sustainability, ethics, and common values in urban social work.
As a result of the project we implement a collection of qualitative data material concerned with urban sustainability and ethics. The specific objective is to empirically identify values in urban development among three of the projects target groups: work field and associated partners, service users, and public servants and decision makers, primarily from the projects’ work field and associated partners. The findings inform the concept for dialogue, the teaching methods and materials, and the competence development activities.
This workpackage includes workshops and network activities. The specific objective of this work package is to train educators in using the methods and materials developed in the project in their teaching and curriculum development and train social work professionals in using the methods and materials to become agents of change.
Københavns Professionshøjskole, Socialrådgiveruddannelsen (lead)
University of Ljubljana (Project partner)
Hoogeschool van Amsterdam (Project partner)
DesignArbeit (Project partner)
Association Kings of the Street (Project partner)
Hjemløseenheden (Project partner)
Ocellia (Project partner)
Foundation OVE (Project partner)
Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences (Project partner)
Familia Ry (Project partner)
‘Common values, civic engagement and participation’ is the main priority of the project. It has a general interest in promoting how social workers can use their knowledge about—and give voice to—people in vulnerable positions by creating spaces for a value-based dimension to conversations about sustainability and urban planning. We work with a joint approach to research, management, communication, and production of results: Protreptic. It means ‘to turn’ towards the essential values of life: ‘the good,’ ‘the just,’ ‘the true,’ ‘the beautiful.’ In doing so, you liberate yourself by reflecting on basic values (Kirkeby 2009).
A protreptic dialogue offers a space where people in different power positions can meet and participate on equal ground. In social work, a similar focus on liberation, the contradiction of power relations, and dialogue versus anti-dialogue can be found in the work of Paulo Freire (1970). We use Kirkeby and Freire’s directions for action in dialogue to facilitate value-based dialogues about urban development amongst social work students, teachers, and practitioners, as well as service users and key actors in urban development.
Although not through a ‘hard-science’ tradition, the project also addresses the horizontal priority of ‘Environment and fight against climate change’. Given the interest in social work for people and their rights, a natural approach to sustainability in this profession goes through its social and economic dimensions.
The project is aligned with The New European Bauhaus Initiative, which points out that the development of a sustainable future is also about creating "places, practices and experiences that are (…) inclusive, encouraging a dialogue across cultures, disciplines, genders and ages." Furthermore, seen from a holistic perspective, the social and economic dimensions of sustainability are inextricably linked with the environmental dimension, so when we educate students to have a focus on sustainability as a natural part of their professionalism and to see themselves even as potential agents of change in relation to sustainable cities, all three dimensions will benefit.
