Social Inequalities Within and Among Countries

This contributed volume sits at the intersection of social work and SDG 10. It provides a variety of cases from around the globe that describe how social work, social services, and community engagement can serve as a catalyst for sustainable development. The book has several aims, including linking social work and applied social sciences to the Agenda 2030 which aims to offer a global roadmap for ending poverty, tackling inequalities, and protecting the planet; showing the relevance of social services and applied research in achieving the SDGs, namely SDG 10: the reduction of inequalities by combating the risk of poverty, providing for inclusion of all, stopping discriminatory practices, and advocating for responsible migration policies; and enhancing awareness of inequalities among countries, transnational partnerships and international solidarity.

As the World Social Science Report demonstrates, research on inequalities and social justice has drawn from several subfields such as political science, sociology, gender studies, social work, development studies, developmental psychology and family studies, and criminology. The contributors to this book, mainly from a social work and research background, reflect an inherently interdisciplinary approach. Their practice orientation makes them predestined to strengthen the research-policy-practice nexus, address discriminatory practices, and promote inclusion and community ownership. Hence, the book can engage students, practitioners and researchers as global citizens and agents for change.

Dr. Nicolette V. Roman holds a PhD in Psychology and is a Senior Professor at the University of the Western Cape, where she is the Founder and Director of the Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies of Children, Families and Society (CISCFS). As the South African Research Chair (SARChI) in the development of human capabilities and social cohesion through the family, Dr. Roman’s research is dedicated to strengthening family capabilities and responding to the needs of families for greater well-being. She is the creator of ‘The Family Space’, a virtual hub designed to support and strengthen families. Deeply committed to building the next generation of scholars, Dr. Roman is an avid mentor who provides training in research methods and writing for publication, helping early career researchers develop their skills and confidence. Her work continues to motivate and shape the future of family well-being, family capabilities, research, and social cohesion in South Africa and beyond.

Shewli Kumar is Associate Professor and Chairperson of the Centre for Women-Centred Social Work, School of Social Work, Tata Institute of Social Sciences. As a social work academic and interventionist she has been researching and working on issues of gender and intersectional  violence and discrimination, feminist community mobilisation, social policy, gender and development practice, and sociology of childhoods. Most of her published papers explore the experiences of women and children in marginal and excluded communities on the basis of caste/race, indigeneity and ethnicity, and religion. As a teacher and mentor she works with young researchers to bring in issues of inequality, discrimination and possible interventions for social change in their work using feminist research epistemology and methodologies. She is part of the South Asian Feminist Alliance for Women’s Economic Social and Cultural Rights and a founder member of the National Council for Women Leaders (NCWL), a collective of Dalit, Adivasi, and Bahujan women. 

Dr. Rashila Ramli is Professor Fellow at Universiti Poly-Tech Malaysia (UPTM).  She was Principal Visiting Fellow at the United Nations University-International Institute of Global Health from 2020 to 2024. Between 2013-2018, she was Director at the Institute of Malaysian and International Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). Her areas of specialization are Political Science, Human Security, Gender and  Development. She is Head of SDG Impact Evaluation Program, Parlimen Malaysia. She is the Deputy President of the Malaysia Social Science Association (PSSM), and the Secretary for the Society for the Promotion of SDG. Two significant publications are “Connecting Oceans” edited with Hans-Dieter Evers and Abdul Rahman Embong (2017, 2020), and “From Global to Local-Experiences and Impacts in Localising SDGs in Malaysia”, 2021,  with Sity Daud.  

Dr. Beatrix Schwarzer has a PhD in Sociology and is Senior Lecturer at the Department of Health and Social Work at Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences. Her research focuses on Transnational Social Work, anti-discrimination and feminism. She is the co-editor of the book “Transnational Social Work and Social Welfare. Challenges for the Social Work Profession” (2016) Routledge.