How is social work shaped by global issues and international problems and how should it address them? This is the only book to examine international social work from a radical perspective. Globalisation had opened up many issues for social work, including how to address global inequalities, the impact of global economic problems and trends towards neoliberalism. By examining the origins of modern social work, problematizing its definition and addressing the care/control dichotomy the book reveals what we can learn from different approaches and projects across the globe. Case studies from the UK, the US, Canada, Spain, Latin America, Australia, Hungary and Greece bring the text to life and allow both students and practitioners to apply theory to practice.

Iain Ferguson is Honorary Professor of Social Work and Social Policy at the University of the West of Scotland and co-editor of Critical and Radical Social Work: an International Journal.

Vasilios Ioakimidis is Professor of Social Work and Director of the Centre for Social Work at the University of Essex.

Michael Lavalette has published widely on radical social work and contemporary social movements. He is co-editor of Critical and Radical Social Work journal.

Introduction, Global Social Work in a Political Context;

Part 1: The Political Context of Contemporary Social Work;

The Political Economy of Social Work;

Neoliberalism, social work and the state: retreat or restructuring?;

The privatisation of social work and social care;

Part 2: Social Work Politics: Past and Present;

Social Work's Horrible Histories;

Social work as a praxis for liberation: the case of Latin American Reconceptualization;

Refugees, Migrants and Social Work;

Social work, climate change and the Anthropocene;

Part 3: Debating the Politics of Social Work Today;

A New Politics of Social Work?;

The case for a social justice based global social work definition;

Conclusion: Making history.