Happy beautiful girl on Montmartre in Paris

Global Engagement and International Partnerships: Faculty of Social Work

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Be a global partner in transformative social work knowledge, education, research, and practice.

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Fostering impactful, collaborative, and reciprocal research and partnerships that are grounded in social justice and human rights principles.

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Respect, Integrity, Equity, Collaboration

The Faculty of Social Work (FSW) at the University of Calgary is committed to societies worldwide to contribute to the grand challenges facing humanity and to work together, at all levels for social justice, and for the universal implementation of human rights and to secure a prosperous and sustainable future for all. We align our work with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, International Federation of Social Workers’ (IFSWs), the International Association of Schools of Social Works (IASSWs)’s Global Standards for Social Work Education and Training, Eyes High strategy 2017-22, Global Engagement Plan 2020-25, Ahead of Tomorrow Strategic Plan 2023-2030 and our FSW Strategic Plan. The Global Engagement Committee (GEC) will endeavour to create reciprocal relationships through teaching and learning, research and scholarship, and local and global community engagement.

100%

Growth in international social work publications (2015-2025)

145

Research partners around the world (2015-2025)

50+

Research collaborations with universities and partners in more than 50 countries (2015-2025)

Expanded Partnerships (2025-2026)

Indo-Pacific, Europe, South Asia, Oceania, Africa and North and South America

The Faculty of Social Work continues to strengthen its global impact through international partnerships, student mobility, collaborative research and innovative approaches to social work education.

Guided by our Global Engagement Strategy, faculty members, students and community partners worked throughout 2025-26 to connect global challenges with local realities while advancing decolonial, community-engaged approaches to research and practice.

A highlight of the year was Global to Grounded: Local Wisdom and the Future of International Social Work, an international webinar co-hosted with the Canadian Association for Social Work Education (CASWE). The event attracted 138 participants from 54 countries and positioned our faculty as a growing international hub for conversations on decolonization, ethics and the future of social work.

The faculty continued to advance international scholarship through conference presentations, emerging research networks and curriculum innovation. Faculty members launched a major evaluation of the Master of Social Work – International and Community Development (MSW-ICD) specialization to explore how social work education can better respond to rapidly changing global realities while remaining grounded in social justice and community accountability.

The faculty also strengthened strategic partnerships, including collaborations with Aga Khan University and the University of Auckland and launched an initiative to map its international research collaborations, partnerships and areas of global impact. The resulting analysis, highlighted on the previous page, reveals significant growth over the past decade and will inform future partnership development.

The future of international social work lies in creating spaces where knowledge can move across borders while remaining grounded in local realities.

Dr. Aamir Jamal

Director, Global Engagement and International Partnerships

In June 2026, Dr. Aamir Jamal was elected as a Member-at-Large to the Board of Directors of the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW). He will serve a four-year term from 2026 to 2030, helping guide the organization’s international leadership, collaboration and advancement of social work education.

During the 2026 Joint World Conference on Social Work and Social Development in Kenya, emerita professor Dr. Linda Kreitzer was honoured with the Decolonising Award by the Africa Social Work and Development Network in recognition of her outstanding contributions in working to decolonize social work. Her work, particularly in Africa, has helped centre Indigenous knowledge systems in social work education, research and practice while advancing internationally informed, culturally responsive and community-centred approaches to the profession.

2025-26 Transforming Masculinities Collaboration

A global movement to transform masculinity

For more than 15 years, Dr. Liza Lorenzetti has been helping reshape conversations around masculinity, violence prevention and well-being through community-based, relationship-focused research. What began in Calgary through initiatives such as the Alberta Men’s Network, Fathers in Focus and the AlbertaMen’s Survey has evolved into the international Transforming Masculinities Collaboration: a growing network of researchers and community leaders working across Afghanistan, Canada, the Caribbean, Mexico, Nepal, Pakistan and the Philippines.

In partnership with Dr. Aamir Jamal, the work emphasizes culturally grounded, locally led approaches to healing, fatherhood, emotional well-being and violence prevention. The next phase of the project includes a new international men’s well-being survey spanning 11 global locations, continuing the faculty’s commitment to community-engaged research and international thought leadership grounded in empathy, storytelling and social justice.

Learn more

Calgary | Auckland student exchange

Through the new Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Scholarship (QES) partnership with Werklund School of Education and the University of Auckland, Faculty of Social Work students are gaining international experience focused on climate resilience, Indigenous knowledge and community-based research.

In 2025–26, UCalgary students Steven Sheppard and Sharon Sajan-Thomas joined New Zealand visiting scholars Eyram Afua Gyimah and Mira Azzasyofia in exploring community-led approaches to climate adaptation, strengthening global partnerships while advancing social justice and intercultural learning.

2026 QES Scholars

Kamal Khatiwada – PhD, Shiney Choudhary – MSW Thesis, Lina Chinchilla – MSW International (Practicum), and Decca Isse – MSW International (Practicum)

Research looks to transform Muslim masculinities through community-driven approaches

In 2025-26, Dr. Aamir Jamal advanced a global research program focused on engaging men in gender justice, girls’ education, and
domestic violence prevention. Working with collaborators across more than 10 Muslim-majority nations, the project used culturally grounded and community- driven approaches to explore how sustainable social change emerges from within communities themselves.

African Social Work Education and Practice: A Historical Perspective

In July 2025, the faculty hosted an international research presentation at our Edmonton campus, focused on decolonizing social work education and practice through African-centred scholarship and global collaboration. The well-attended event also featured a reception for senior leaders from the International Association of Schools of Social Work.

N. Wallace

Bachelor of Social Work student Nicholas Wallace got a first-hand look at international social work through the India Group Study trip in 2025, led by Social Work professor Dr. Christine Walsh. Through visits to community organizations, refugee camps and social service agencies, Wallace explored how culture, community and
lived experience shape social work practice. Wallace says the experience broadened his understanding of global issues, strengthened his commitment to culturally responsive practice and led to new research and international conference opportunities.

University of Calgary Research Excellence Chair Dr. Ajwang’ Warria is helping shape international responses to human trafficking, labour exploitation and migration through partnerships spanning Africa and Canada. Her continuing work has contributed to anti-trafficking legislation development in South Africa and child migration curriculum development with UNICEF. At UCalgary, Warria is also preparing the next generation of social workers through innovative teaching and survivor-informed research as part of a new undergraduate course titled “Slavery, Exploitation and Human Trafficking.”

Artisanal Mining Research

As part of her growing body of international community- engaged research, Warria is beginning a new collaboration with partners in Kenya to explore the lives, risks and resilience of communities involved in artisanal gold mining. The emerging project, funded by a Transdisciplinary Scholarship Connector Award, will examine the complex socio-cultural, economic and health realities surrounding informal mining operations, including precarious working conditions, harmful environmental exposure, family disruption, migration, policing and community resistance. During recent field visits to Kenyan communities, Warria and collaborators began relationship-building work with miners, families, activists and local leaders to better understand what daily life looks like within the mining ecosystem before formal research begins. The work is grounded in a participatory approach that seeks to amplify community voices and experiences while informing more responsive, community-driven policy and support systems.