Universität Innsbruck
Michael Rasell joined the Disability Studies and Inclusive Pedagogy team at the University of Innsbruck in November 2021. He is a qualitative sociologist and his research analyses how social services and professional practice shape the inclusion, rights and wellbeing of citizens.
Michael previously worked at the University of Lincoln in the United Kingdom, where he developed a strong profile in international social work. He co-supervised a Marie Curie Fellowship that built evidence base to support Polish women victims of domestic abuse in the United Kingdom (2020-22) and coordinated the Erasmus Mundus Master programme “Advanced Development in Social Work” from 2013-2019, which seeks to upgrade the practice skills of experienced social workers from around the world.
Knowledge exchange is an important element of Michael’s work. He is a member of the Working Group “Measures to strengthen the peer movement in mental health” in Austria as part of an initiative targeted at destigmatising mental health coordinated by Gesundheit Österreich. Michael is also a trustee of the UK-based charity BEARR, which supports grassroots civil society organisations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia to tackle social and health issues.
David Furtschegger completed his doctorate as a fellow of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) at the Department of Sociology at the University of Innsbruck. Through his many years of work in education and social work, he has focused his research on sociological issues in education, inclusion and social services with a focus on theory-based qualitative research methods. Since 2021 he has been researching and teaching at the Department of Education at the University of Innsbruck.
Florian Ohnmacht (PhD), born in 1986, is a university assistant at the Institute of Educational Science (focus on »Migration and Education«) at University of Innsbruck. The sociologist and educationalist was a member of the doctoral program »Dynamics of Inequality and Difference in the Age of Globalization« and is part of the Research Center Migration & Globalization at the University of Innsbruck. He also worked as an addiction counselor in different social services.
Aalborg Universitet
Lars Uggerhøj is a Full Professor of Social Work at Aalborg University, Denmark. He is a trained social worker with several years practice from social work. He holds a PhD in social work. His research focus is the meeting between service users and social services with a specific focus on service user experiences and involvement. He has a methodological focus on Practice Research and the development of this. He has published widely nationally and internationally during more than 30 years. He has headed the Danish MSc in Social Science in Social Work for nine years. He is currently the Programme Coordinator of the international Erasmus mundus programme ‘Master’s in Advanced Development in Social Work’. He is heading the ‘Practice Research and Service User Perspectives’ research network at Aalborg University, and has coordinated and is still member of the steering groups in the Nordic ‘Knowledge Production in Social Work’ research network and the ‘Nordic/Baltic Doctoral Network in Social Work’. He is head of the International Community of Practice research and Editor-in-Chief of the journal: European Social Work Research.
Mette Rømer, Ph.D. in social work, is an associate professor in social work at the Department of Sociology and Social Work at Aalborg University, Denmark. She is a qualitative researcher who researches the perspectives and rights of vulnerable groups who live on the edge of society and/or cross borders, for instance, sex-trafficked victims and offenders with intellectual disabilities. From a social justice perspective, she analyses the meetings of these vulnerable groups with the authorities with an analytical focus on how social services and professional practices shape the inclusion/exclusion, rights and well-being of these ‘hard to reach’ groups. At the department, Mette teaches at the graduate and post-graduate social work programme, the post-graduate programme in criminology and the Erasmus Mundus Master programme “Advanced Development in Social Work”.
Maja Lundemark Andersen is an associate professor, educated social worker, Dr. and Head of the Master Programme in Social Work, at Aalborg University. Her research is focused on user perspectives and practice research in Social Work. Among other fields of interest, a special dimension is empowerment and on-the-job training. She has been working with empowerment as a concept in social work practice since 1988, and as a field of research since 2002. Her interest is also directed towards how the social work profession interacts and intersects with different fields in social work.
Maja Müller: Sociologist with a Ph.D. in social sciences and assistant Professor at the Department of Sociology and Social Work at Aalborg University. She teaches courses for the Master in Social work, and her research concerns co-production with vulnerable groups in social work, citizen participation and service user involvement, poverty and social inclusion and exclusion in a welfare context. Her current research focus on vulnerable young´s life trajectories from school to education/employment and involves youth perspectives on social services.
Ninna Meier is associate professor in organisational sociology at the Department of Sociology and Social Work at Alborg University. She holds a degree in philosophy and business administration (Cand.merc.phil) and received her PhD from Aarhus University; a comparative qualitative study of clinical managerial work in four different public sector hospital units. She uses case-based and problem-based teaching methods and currently teaches courses in organisational sociology, advanced qualitative methods, and academic writing. She is a member of the Relational Coordination Research Collaborative, the European Group of Organization Studies (EGOS), and the Academy of Management (healthcare management and organization theory divisions). Since 2015, she has been an associate fellow at Oxford University. She has studied coordination, collaboration, and leadership/management of interorganisational coordination in and across public sector organisations since 2009, the use of AI decision-support tools in emergency medicine services, and how staff make sense of organizational change through engagement with simulation tools.
Uniwersytet Warszawski
AGNIESZKA NAUMIUK, PHD Associate Professor
Employment: University of Warsaw, Faculty of Education, Department: Integration, Inclusion and Social Education.
Fields of interest:
- Conditions of upbringing, social and educational activity in the environment. The role of a social educator in the local environment;
- Education in civil society and democracy building, social organizations as an educational environment;
- Social participation of youth and adults as well as recipients of social services;
- Adult education in action and through experience, education of social workers, non-formal and informal education systems;
- Participation of local communities in creating a social support network and building direct democracy: social education, local activation: participation, innovation, emancipation and activation of citizens, advocacy for the interests of people at risk of exclusion, subjectivity and human rights in situations of risk of exclusion;
- links between social pedagogy and social work, activation of local communities, social inclusion and education, innovation and effectiveness of aid activities;
- development of education and research systems in the field of international social work;
- Jane Addams and the “Hull House” settlement concept. More: assumptions, models and programs of long-term community support (community organizing, community development).
Agnieszka Wołowicz, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education, University of Warsaw, Poland. Her research interests focus on situation of women with disabilities. She specialises in qualitative research methods. She has authored 2 monographs on women with disabilities and published articles in peer-reviewed journals and chapters in edited books, in Poland and internationally. She also serves as an expert and researcher for Polish Association for People with Intellectual Disability, Polish Forum of People with Disabilities and International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IASSIDD).
Barbara Lipińska-Zańko, MA, graduate of socio-cultural animation at the Faculty of Education of the University of Warsaw. In her doctoral thesis, she focuses on the relationship between self-care and responsiveness in social pedagogy. Her scientific interests include: informal education, excluded communities and their voice in public space, and self-care in pedagogy. She worked in non-governmental organizations (Centrum Wspierania Aktywności Lokalnej CAL Association, Polish Drug Policy Network) and cultural institutions (Dk Zacisze, Art & Marges musée). So far, she has participated in research in two projects in the area of school achievements and democratic school culture. In the Responsive project, she is responsible for the substantive and administrative implementation of tasks.
Magdalena Kuleta-Hulboj, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education, University of Warsaw, Poland. Her research interests focus on global and intercultural education. She is a researcher and lecturer with 15+ experience in teaching courses on undergraduate and postgraduate levels (e.g. social pedagogy, community education, global education). She specialises in qualitative research methods. She has authored and coedited 3 monographs on global and intercultural education and published over 20 articles in peer-reviewed journals and 10 chapters in edited books, in Poland and internationally. She also serves as an expert and researcher on global education for Grupa Zagranica, a platform of 61 Polish non-governmental organizations involved in international development cooperation, democracy support, humanitarian aid and global education.
She is a member of the Polish Educational Research Association and a member of Advisory Board of ANGEL – Academic Network of Global Education and Learning.
Dr. Szymon Wójcik, PhD in sociology, graduate of the Institute of Applied Social Sciences of the University of Warsaw, where he currently works as an assistant professor at the Department of Sociological Analysis of Public Policies. A sociologist specializing in the analysis of social policy, poverty, social economy, the activity of third sector entities and civil society. As a teacher, he co-leads the specialization track “Social Project Coordinator” and “Non-Governmental Organizations. Cross-sector cooperation” at ISNS UW. He has also been working for many years at the Empowering Children Foundation, the largest Polish non-governmental organization dealing with the protection of children against abuse.
Dr hab. Anna Zielińska, university professor. Member of the Department of Educational Policy and Social Research on Education and a long-time employee of the Faculty of Education of the University of Warsaw.
Marta Jadwiga Pietrusińska, Ph.D., is a sociologist, educator and equality trainer specialising in critical migration studies, interculturalism and civic education. Since 2021 she has been working primarily on the situation on the Polish-Belarusian border as part of the research collective Researchers on the Border (https://www.bbng.org/). Her research focuses on issues related to social and cultural minorities and the use of adult civic education in the processes of integration and inclusion of minority and majority groups. She works as an assistant professor with a doctoral degree at the University of Warsaw at the Faculty of Education and at the Faculty of Sociology, where, among other things, she conducts research within the Centre for Research on Women and Gender Issues. For 14 years she also has been cooperating with Polish and international non-governmental organisations working with and for people with migration experience and in the area of increasing social and political participation of excluded groups, i.e. women, youth, LGBTQA+ people, migrants and migrant women. As part of this cooperation, she conducts research, conducts workshops and trainings and prepares recommendations related to migration, integration and local policies.
Katarzyna Gajlewicz-Korab (major: journalism and social communication). She worked in many editorial offices (among others: Tok FM, Radio Bis, TVP S.A.) and cooperated in numerous press titles and photo agencies.
Since 2004, she has been a doctoral student at the Department of Media Systems at the Institute of Journalism. She defended her doctoral thesis entitled “French Opinion Weeklies towards Muslims in France” in 2009. From December 2009 to September 2014, she served as Acting Head of the Department of Journalism Practice. She received her doctoral degree in 2019. Since 2020, she has served as Manager of Part-time Studies in Journalism and Media Studies.
Research interests: French media system/foreign media systems, media literacy, celebritization, media convergence, tabloidization of the media, platformization of the media, media cultures
Functions held in organizations, societies and scientific bodies: Since 2014, member of an international research group (LEMEL) monitoring the online media market in Europe. Since 2015, coordinator of the Polish corps of this group. Member of PTKS and PTEM.
Instituto Superior de Ciências Sociais e Políticas
Carla Pinto: Associate Professor at ISCSP/University of Lisbon and researcher at CAPP (Center for Administration and Public Policies), in the fields of Social Work and Social Policy.
Coordinator of the scientific and pedagogical unit of Social Work and Social Policy, and member of the Scientific Council. She teaches Social Work and Social Policy in undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. She teaches the Erasmus Mundus MA Advanced development in social work, and represents ISCSP/UL in the Programme Consortium.
Social worker with a PhD in Social Policy (ISCSP/UL), her main interests in teaching, research and publication are focused on theory and practice of social work and social policy, with special emphasis on empowerment and eco-social transition, Eco-social work and sustainable welfare, participatory approaches and co-creation, and the governance of longevity and aging and long-term care.
Ana Esgaio
Ana Esgaio is a social worker, PhD in Social Sciences (Speciality in Social Work), assistant professor in social work and social policy, and executive coordinator of the BA in Social Work in the School of Social and Political Sciences (ISCSP)- University of Lisbon.
She is also a contributor to the Administration and Public Policies Research Centre at ISCSP and to ISCSP Citizenship, a unit mission of this institution.
Her teaching and research activities are mainly focused on social responsibility and community intervention.
Her professional experience outside the academic field was focused on project management and local networks on the local public administration. She integrates strategic planning programmes at local level, as well as national networks that promote social responsibility in organizational settings.
Fernando Serra
Fernando Serra is an associate Professor at ISCSP/University of Lisbon and researcher at CAPP (Center for Administration and Public Policies), in the fields of social policy, human rights and citizenship. He holds a PhD in Education-Sociology of Education. Currently he is one of the vice presidents of ISCSP and the former coordinator of the Social Work and Social Policy department (2013-2020). He also coordinates the ISCSP-Citizenship and ISCSP-Inclusion, both missions units of this Institute.
Fernando Serra teaches on social theory, epistemology and social policy theory at doctoral level, and human rights, ethics, citizenship and introduction to social policy at graduate level. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the Agency for Assessment and Accreditation of Higher Education (A3ES) and a member of the Higher Education & Research Standing Committee of HERSC, European Trade Union Committee for Education.
Elvira Pereira
Assistant Professor at the Institute of Social and Political Sciences, Universidade de Lisboa (ISCSP/ULisboa) and integrated researcher of the Centre for Public Administration and Public Policies (CAPP) since 2010, when she obtained her PhD in Economic Sociology from Universidade Técnica de Lisboa. Member of the Social Work and Social Policy Scientific and Pedagogical Coordination Unit and Executive Coordinator of the master’s degree in Social Policy at ISCSP. Her main research interests lie in the areas of wellbeing and social policy, focusing on poverty, human needs and reference budgets, income adequacy and minimum income policies.
Sónia Sebastião
Full Professor Sónia Pedro Sebastião holds a PhD in Social Sciences in the speciality of Communication Sciences and a Master degree in Political Science. She is the Scientific and Pedagogical Coordinator of the Communication Sciences Department of ISCSP and the Executive President of the research Centre of Public Administration and Public Policies (CAPP/FCT). She is the Portuguese national researcher of the European Communication Monitor. She is a member of EUPRERA (European Public Relations Education and Research Association) and the Vice-President of the General Assembly of SOPCOM (Portuguese Association of Communication Sciences). She develops research on the areas of public relations, strategic communication, citizenship and culture. Her current research interests include Ethics in Communication, Sustainable Communication and Climate Change.
Université Paris Nanterre
Anna RURKA, Senior Lecturer in Sciences of education and training, Faculty of Psychological sciences and education and training sciences, Research Center Education and Training (EA, 1589), Paris Nanterre University. Anna Rurka researches are specialised in child protection, with an emphasis on parental involvement in social services and decision-making processes. She started to develop the research about the support provided to LGBTQIA+ children and young people in child protection system. Within Université Paris Nanterre she teach on public and social policies, analysis of intervention mechanisms and training, methodology of international project, research methodology. Outgoing President of the Conference of INGOs of the Council of Europe and currently Chair of the Action Committee for Social Rights within the Conference. Representing Paris Nanterre Université in the EASSW Board. She is a qualified expert in the High Council on Social Work in France.
Andreea GRUEV-VINTILA, PhD in psychology, is Senior lecturer authorized to supervise research (HDR) at the School of Social Sciences and Administration of the University Paris Nanterre, a member of the Parisian Laboratory of Social Psychology, coordinator of the ANR XTREAMIS project Xenophobia, Radicalization in Europe, AntiSemitism, Islamophobia, national coordinator of several European projects, partner in the REVIE project, Virtual reality, a tool for interventions with perpetrators of domestic violence, funded by the French Ministry of Justice-DAP. She conducts interdisciplinary research on the psychosocial processes, impact and criminalization of violence and coercive control. She is the author of the first publication in French on Coercive Control.
sur Le contrôle coercitif. Repérer les violences au sein du couple dans les interactions et le rapport de pouvoir entre l’auteur et la victime. In I. Rome & E. Martinent (Eds.), L’emprise et les violences au sein du couple. Paris : Dalloz, 2021.
She trains judges at the National School for the Judiciary on coercive control. She contributed to the Domestic violence working group of the Grenelle Violences Conjugales (2019), to a bill to better ensure the safety of children who are co-victims of domestic violence (2021), to the Legal taskforce of the Fondation des Femmes, and she initiated an article on the criminalization of coercive control in French law. She has published more than thirty articles in international scientific journals, ten chapters in works published by Dalloz, Erès, De Boeck, etc., and coordinated two special issues of the Cahiers internationale de psychologie sociale: JUSTICE ( 2014) and CRISES (2010). She is fluent in 5 EU languages.
Ylias FERKANE, Senior Lecturer in Law, Faculty of Law and Political Science, Paris Nanterre University. As a specialist in labour law, in addition to his responsibilities (Codirector of the Master 2 Social Law: Social Protection and Health Law) and lectures (Labour law, Social welfare law, Health law, Social business law, Judges and labour) at the university, Ylias Ferkane provides training to members of Staff Representative Bodies in different organisations.
Agathe Osinski holds a master’s degree in Comparative Politics from the London School of Economics (UK), and a master’s degree in Economics from the Université Catholique de Louvain (Belgium), where she also completed her PhD in 2021. Her doctoral work focused on transdisciplinary methods for research on social and environmental sustainability. Agathe is passionate about poverty eradication, strengthening participation and co-constructing research that recognises the multiplicity of knowledge types. She previously worked for the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights Professor Olivier De Schutter and collaborated on a research project at the University of Oxford.
Centrul de formare și evaluare în asistența socială
HERBERT PAULISCHIN
- President of CFCECAS
- University studies completed with a bachelor’s degree in the field of social work – qualification level -6 of the EQF / CEC, licensed social work
- IFSW Europe Representative to UN Vienna
ADELA SETET
- Manager at CFCECAS;
- University studies completed with a master’s degree in the field of social work – qualification level 7 of the EQF / CEC, Master Risk groups and social support services
- University studies completed with a bachelor’s degree in the field of social work – qualification level -6 of the EQF / CEC, licensed social work
LUCIAN CACIAMAC
- University studies completed with a bachelor’s degree in law – qualification level -6 from EQF / CEC, Bachelor of Laws;
- University studies completed with a bachelor’s degree in the field of social work – qualification level -6 of the EQF / CEC, bachelor’s degree in social work theology
- Trainer – certificate of professional skills
ALEXANDRA ZOIȚUC
- Social worker – University studies completed with a bachelor’s degree in the field of social work – qualification level -6 of the EQF / CEC, bachelor’s degree in social work
- University studies completed with a master’s degree in social work – qualification level 7 of the EQF / CEC
- Experience in promoting activities carried out under European funded projects
- Coordinator of ERASMUS+ projects
International Federation of Social Workers
ANA RADULESCU
President IFSW Europe (Nov 2018 – Apr 2024): Advocate for social workers’ rights, shaping the future of European social work. Executive Director CFCECAS, Romania (Feb 2008 – Present): Leadership in the Centre for Training and Evaluation in Social Work, contributing to Romania’s social work development. General Director ASproAS (Jul 2010 – Present): Key role in advancing and recognizing social work professionals in Romania. Adviser to the Minister – Ministry of Labour and Social Protection, Romania (Aug 2016 – Dec 2016): Strategic advisory contributions to ministry decision-making. Project Coordinator – “Increasing responsiveness to citizen voice in social services across Europe” (Feb 2023): Leading a project focused on enhancing citizen engagement in social services. Project Coordinator – “VERA – Positive change through integrated action in turbulent times!” (Jul 2022 – Apr 2024): Managing collaborative projects for positive change in partnership with the National Agency for Gender Equality. Expert – Intervention to support Ukrainian Refugees in Romania – IOM UN Migration (May 2022 – Dec 2022): Providing expertise to support refugees in Romania. Guest Lecturer – Erasmus Mundus MA Advanced Development in Social Work 2.0 (Jul 2020 – Aug 2023): Contributing as a guest lecturer to the advanced development of social work on an international platform. Social Services – European Social Network / European Commission (Mar 2016 – Jun 2022): Active involvement in shaping European social services. Short Term Local Expert for the National Agency for Child Protection (2008): Contribution to effective services and alternative measures for child deinstitutionalization. Long Term Expert / Training Coordinator for the National Agency for Child Protection (Jan 2007 – Nov 2007): Coordinating training activities for social inclusion measures.
NICOLAI PAULSEN
Policy advisor, Danish Association of Social Workers. Professional social worker since 1985 with a wide experience in practical professional social work and in planning, coordination, education, and practice research within social work. Practical Expert/Short-term Expert in a Phare project (Consensus Programme); External Project Co-ordinator for a 3+5 year organisational and training programme in Zimbabwe; Professional expert within the Sectoral Reference Group “Healthcare and social work activities” reviewing and validating the contents (terms) of the EU ESCO classification. IFSW Europe representative to the IFSW Global Education Commission;
TEODORA DOBRE
Teodora Dobre skillfully navigates different roles as a social worker, trainer and researcher. In her capacity as a social worker, Teodora actively engages with individuals and communities, addressing a diverse spectrum of social issues with a hands-on approach. Her unwavering commitment to the principles of social work is evident as she provides invaluable support, resources and advocacy, helping to improve the well-being of those she serves. In addition to her impactful work in social work practice, Teodora is a researcher who contributes significantly to the knowledge base in the field. Her research initiatives focus on delving into the complexity of social problems, exploring innovative solutions, and informing evidence-based practice. Teodora’s unique combination of social work and research expertise positions her as a bridge between theory and practice. This distinctive skill set enables her to ensure that her work remains firmly rooted in real-world experiences, while contributing to the ongoing development of knowledge within the social work discipline.
Conseil départemental des Yvelines
Lyse-Maëlle Guillard
A lawyer by training, Lyse-Maëlle Guillard is responsible for the Mission Ressources et Développement (MR&D) of the Deputy Directorate Enfance Famille Santé of the Yvelines Departmental Council, a community in the west of the Metropolis of Paris. Notably in charge of the coordination of the Departmental Committee Enfance Jeunesse, she manages the issues of territorial observation of children in danger and interventions of prevention and child protection. MR&D participates in the strengthening of territorial professional expertise in the field of Childhood, and carries, in a transversal and partnership approach, the power to act of children and youth accompanied by services.
A.RETIS : Association, Recherche, Education, Territoires, Interventions, Sociabilités
Stowarzyszenie Centrum Wspierania Aktywności Lokalnej CAL
Izabela Grabowska, PhD is an Assistant Professor at the Warsaw School of Economics in the Institute of Statistics and Demography. She also works as an independent evaluator of public policy. She has gathered 10-year experience in public administration in the field of structural funds (coordination of support units for local organizations and animation of local communities). From 2009 till 2014 she was Head of the National Institute for the European Social Fund in Poland. She is an author and co-author of publications in the field of disability, labour markets, social exclusion, quality of life. Her research interests include: disability, life quality, social exclusion, public policy evaluation, social economy. We conduct many national and international projects in these fields. She closely cooperates with the University of Warsaw and CAL Association.
Bohdan Skrzypczak, PhD, social pedagogue, author of numerous scientific and methodical publications. Academically and socially, he deals with community development mechanisms of local communities He is the President of the nationwide non-governmental organisation CAL Local Activity Support Centre. He also works at the University of Warsaw, where he heads the laboratory “Social Innovation Laboratory” and chairs the Scientific Council of the Institute of Social Prevention and Resocialisation. His research focuses on social economy issues and public pedagogy, i.e. learning about educational processes present in politics and the public sphere. He serves as chairman of the National Committee for the Development of the Social Economy.
Município da Amadora
Ana Moreno: Master in social policy by the Institute of Political and Social Sciences of Lisbon and Degree in Social Work from the Institute of Social Service of Lisbon. Head of Division of Social Intervention of the Municipality since April 2011. Responsible for the preparation and coordination of project applications for national and community funding in social action and health. Responsible for the elaboration of the strategic planning documents of the Social Network of Amadora, which includes the Strategic Plan for Sustainable Aging, The Municipal Plan Against Violence and Municipal Plan for the Integration of Migrants.
Rute Gonçalves: Degree in Social Policy by the Institute of Political and Social Sciences of Lisbon. Social Worker in Amadora Municipality since 1999, responsible for the development and implementation of the Social Local Network (based on local partnership) and the functioning of the Local Council for Social Action (CLAS) and for research and project management in areas such as Domestic Violence, Qualification of the Social Services, Equality of Opportunities and elderly population. Development of tools for social strategic planning and evaluation of the Social Network, namely social diagnosis, Social Development Plan and Action Plans, as well as evaluation reports. Participation in European projects in various intervention areas, namely: “SMARCARE” (European Commission, 2012); “Beyond Silos” (European Commission, 2013); “Arrival Cities” (European Commission, URBACT III Programme, 2014); “Rumourless Cities” (European Commission, URBACT III Programme, 2018); “Network of Municipalities for Equality” (EEA Grants Programme, 2020).
