24^TH ICSD BIENNIAL CONFERENCE

08-10 January, 2025

Venue:  Rajagiri Business School, Kakkanad

Organised by:Rajagiri School of Social Work

Rajagiri College of Social Sciences (Autonomous), Cochin, Kerala, India

In association with

International Consortium for Social Development (ICSD)

24th ICSD Biennial Conference

Development has been a focus of humankind since ancient times. It involves creating social conditions that sustainably and equitably foster individual and collective well-being. However, the path to development has undergone various debates and changes across different periods, involving shifts in concepts, theories, and practical approaches. The idea of social development emerged when it was felt that true development could not be achieved solely through economic advancement. Its proponents advocated a holistic and multi-level approach, instead. Social development is a broad concept that involves significant changes in politics, economics, and culture, all aimed at transforming society through deliberate efforts, characterised by increased capacity within the social system, social structure, institutions, services, and policies to effectively utilise resources and generate positive changes in the standard of living.

The world is constantly facing challenges in ensuring peace and stability that enable people to live in harmony. War, conflict, poverty, political instability, human rights violations, forced displacement, climate change etc. call for a united effort if we are to advance the UN’s sustainable development goals. Social workers and social development professionals play a vital role in addressing the many challenges faced by individuals, communities, and societies. It is essential to view ‘development’ as a process as well as an outcome, realizing that achieving such an aim requires engagement with multiple stakeholders to find inclusive pathways, especially for the most marginalized and vulnerable communities. As a concept in social work, social work practices at the micro, meso, and macro levels have a considerable role in social development. As the world moves swiftly towards the post-modern era, innovations in areas such as new approaches to service delivery, technology integration, policy changes and community organising strategies, are necessary to achieve the desired end.

The ICSD 24^th Biennial International Conference aims to provide an opportunity to critically reflect on the multiple ways in which social work and social development professionals have advanced innovative solutions to unite and improve outcomes for individuals, families and communities, locally and globally. The conference will also celebrate ICSD’s golden jubilee; showcasing its commendable contribution to the field of social work and social development across the world.

Call for Papers/Proposals

We are calling for papers (for oral and poster presentations) that bring together novel solutions to development issues through social work and social development practices. All kinds of innovations will be considered, whether methodological, theoretical, social, technological, policy, practice-based or organisational and are of local relevance and/or have the potential for large-scale replication. Lessons learned from implementing evidence-based solutions, interdisciplinary approaches, and critiques of current solutions are also welcome. Interested participants can submit proposals for a workshop (90 minutes) or a panel discussion (4 panellists maximum on a theme excluding the chair,10 minutes each) on the related topics.

NB: Posters/workshop/panel discussion proposals should be submitted to the conference secretariate (email: icsd2025@rajagiri.edu). Abstract Should be submitted to CMT through conference website (conference.rajagiri.edu/icsd)

Publication

Interested presenters will be invited to submit their full paper for peer-reviewed publication consideration in the following journals / book series:

• Social Development Issues (SDI)
• International Journal of Community and Social Development (IJCSD) (Scopus Q1)
• Rajagiri Journal of Social Development (RJSD)
• Edited book chapter in Springer series on Social Development

Important Days

Call for abstracts: 21^st March – 15^th July 2024

Notification on acceptance of abstracts: 31^st August, 2024

Early Bird Registration: 1^st September – 30^th Sepember, 2024

Regular Registration: 1^st October – 31^st October, 2024

Contact:

Conference Secretariate​ - ICSD 2025

Rajagiri College of Social Sciences (Autonomous)

Rajagiri P. O, Cochin - 683104, Kerala, India

Email: icsd2025@rajagiri.edu

Mob: +91 – 7356472239

Website: https://conference.rajagiri.edu/icsd

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