Rachel L. West, MSW, LMSW The Political Social Worker A couple of days ago a Tumblr follower asked me for some advice about applying to an MSW program. This gave me the idea to put together a small list of resources for perspective (and current) social work students. socialworkhelper.com A social networking site for helping […]Continue reading “Resources for Prospective Social Workers — The Political Social Worker”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Economic Globalization, Sleep-Wake Rhythms & COVID-19
Macro/Policy Environmental Social Work Perspective Economic globalization become a worldwide trend (Han, 2019). With globalization comes technology. Technology and the environment should be of growing concern. Now more than ever. Given COVID-19, are legislators and enforcers thinking of the stimulus and social welfare in terms physiological rhythms in humans? Studies show that relevant to the environmentContinue reading “Economic Globalization, Sleep-Wake Rhythms & COVID-19”
Guest Speaker on ENVITALYFE Podcast
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The Nature of Silent-Welfare
Never have I ever ☝️👉 not found silence to be the most resourceful tool when met with disorder. Silence is an action & a weapon when not used appropriately as it likely causes an influx of unbalanced power dynamics. “The increase of disorder or entropy with time is one example of what is called anContinue reading “The Nature of Silent-Welfare”
The Relevance of Innovation | Ceditability of Problem Solving for Social Workers at Mezzo & Macro Levels
Social Workers solve problems as do many other professions. Collaboration between professionals in this day and age is necessary to address environmental changes occurring at this moment. To collaborate, Social Workers must go beyond our historic and formalized path. Rationally speaking, this seems obvious. Yet, I am met with so many dificulties as I approachContinue reading “The Relevance of Innovation | Ceditability of Problem Solving for Social Workers at Mezzo & Macro Levels”
Full Circle. Feedback Loops
I was in the sculpture and instillation program. A dual degree in psychology before I transferred to begin my path in Social Work. However for a brief moment my artistic self was at bay while I studied. It recently has come back through engaging with STEM research and environmental justice work in the form ofContinue reading “Full Circle. Feedback Loops”
Social Work and Environmental Justice
SOCIAL JUSTICE SPOTLIGHT October 2019 Environmental Racism and Systems of Oppression Gabrielle Conrad-Amlicke | Policy 2020 Frederick Olmsted, an American Landscape designer best known for Central Park (New York, NY) and The Emerald Necklace (Boston, MA), also designed Keney Park (Hartford, CT). Keney Park runs vertically up and down the west half of Hartford’s Northeast neighborhood. TheContinue reading “Social Work and Environmental Justice”
A Poem; Not Advocacy
Envy is what drives us and to surrender to emotions that mute us — envy results in suspending the mind from movement. Without movement, we are silent observers. Envious of what the earth could be. Dreamers dream; far from pollution- the rising toxicity of their environment. They envy those who are now dead, those whoContinue reading “A Poem; Not Advocacy”
How Did we Come to Regulate Almost Every Aspect of Life Through Policy, Yet, Fail to Properly Politicize the Earth’s Raw-Resources? (sigh)
Ecological economics and environmental social work
NASW
Let’s Not be Stuck in The Myth of Sisyphus: Gravity, Feedback Loops, & Social Work
Gravity is “invisible” but not removed from sensation; we can feel the effects of gravity daily, for example dropping something on your foot. In short gravity relates to mass, “People have mass too, and while our physical bodies might not exert gravity the way the Sun affects the Earth, our interests, experiences, appearance, ethics, morals,Continue reading “Let’s Not be Stuck in The Myth of Sisyphus: Gravity, Feedback Loops, & Social Work”
Social Worker’s : MSW & BSW – How I became an Advocate for Environmental Justice as an MSW Graduate Student. Field placements, course work, and developing your professional identity.
The first skills you develop as any student but especially a social work academic are ones that involve learning to think critically. At the start of my social work engagement is artistic engagement. In 2012 was accepted into a Fine Art’s School in Boston. My artistic thesis was always rooted in nature; through my clayContinue reading “Social Worker’s : MSW & BSW – How I became an Advocate for Environmental Justice as an MSW Graduate Student. Field placements, course work, and developing your professional identity.”
Broken Windows Theory & Social Work Practice
The “broken windows” theory gives social workers insight into the way the physical environment both directly and indirectly affect (Abdullah et. al, 2015) the populations we work with. Physical environments that display; broken windows, trash, litter, a lack of maintenance to green space or architecture are thought to produce actions that resemble the environment; higherContinue reading “Broken Windows Theory & Social Work Practice”
“Keney Park” Never Heard of it? Blame Environmental Racism and Systems of Oppression.
The most renowned parks in America have a discarded counterpart: “Keney Park” in Hartford, CT -all designed by Fredrick Olmsted- better known for NYC’s “Central Park” Boston’s “Emerald Necklace Conservancy” Frederick Olmsted, an American Landscape designer best known for Central Park (New York, NY) and The Emerald Necklace (Boston, MA), also created Keney Park (Hartford,Continue reading ““Keney Park” Never Heard of it? Blame Environmental Racism and Systems of Oppression.”
Environmental Justice Framed Through the 5 Senses
Structural developments have the ability to influence community engagement and overall lower stress, which in return can have positive effects on reducing mental and physical ailments. Even short exposures to natural settings can support individuals in overall health. Stress can be viewed as one of the most influential causes of health problems: anxiety, depression, andContinue reading “Environmental Justice Framed Through the 5 Senses”
EcoFeminism
Language can be used as a tool for social influence. In reference to my own beliefs about the world, Nature is often viewed as feminine “Mother Nature” and the content of the language often used when speaking about Nature is more often than not negative; we mainly hear of historical and present references to theContinue reading “EcoFeminism”
From Artist to Social Worker
The only thing which have changed are the tools held in my hand and the means by which my artistic “thesis-theme-message” (whatever we may call it in the both the high-class art scene and the street art scene) each artist has a message… how we convey that message varies. Policy practice is a realistic roleContinue reading “From Artist to Social Worker”