With a doctoral student exchange in April at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban, South Africa, the "Global Transformation and Social Work Practice" program is taking the next important step after the first congress(Opens in a new tab) in Johannesburg in summer 2023. But the collaboration has also grown and flourished in the meantime. An overview.
How does global transformation affect social work and how should those involved in the profession deal with it? To answer these questions, the program(Opens in a new tab) has set itself the goal of forming "SDG partnerships": These are collaborations between universities in the Global North and the Global South based on the "17 Sustainable Development Goals" (SDGs) proclaimed by the UN.
Prof. Dr. Michael Boecker is leading the cooperation with three other universities on behalf of Fachhochschule Dortmund: the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), the University of Johannesburg (UJ), also in South Africa, and Midland State University (MSU) in Harare, Zimbabwe. The project is coordinated by social worker Dorothée Boecker.
In addition to the annual congress, the universities organize digital workshops and a regular exchange of doctoral students, which the universities take turns hosting.
Visit to the Fachhochschule Dortmund
It was not until the end of 2023 that four doctoral students from South Africa and Zimbabwe visited Fachhochschule Dortmund. During a stay of several weeks, they took part in numerous workshops, symposia and other events, visited exhibitions and some neighboring cities such as Cologne and Bonn.
In the Nordstadtgalerie Dortmund, the researchers presented their doctoral topics and presented a diverse range of scientific issues.
- Sunungurayi Charamba from Midlands State University in Zimbabwe investigated the effects of climate change on rural women in the Chivi District in the Masvingo Province in Zimbabwe. In her work, she highlights the challenges and proposes adaptation strategies.
- In addition, Tapiwanashe Gladys Simango from the same university analyzed the cultural perspectives of grief and loss among the Ndau and Ndebele ethnic groups in Zimbabwe.
- Nomusa Munoangira from the University of Johannesburg looked at the role of social protection programs in promoting social development during the Covid-19 pandemic, focusing on the Buhera District in Zimbabwe.
- Bongane Morris Mzinyane from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban provided insights into the practice of adult diversion by probation officers and prosecutors in a rural district of KwaZulu-Natal, contributing to a better understanding of the dynamics of the justice system. Diversion is a legal alternative to the court process, the conviction of which has less of a negative impact on the future lives of offenders than a prison sentence.
The event at the Nordstadtgalerie Dortmund provided a platform for intellectual exchange and underlined the importance of these doctoral projects in shaping the future discourse and academic landscape.
"These studies promise to contribute valuable insights to their respective fields and promote collaboration and the advancement of knowledge," acknowledged Michael Boecker. The exchange "once again sharpened the focus on global issues and challenges as well as the opportunities and risks of development cooperation as a possible reproduction of post-colonial inequalities," emphasizes Dorothée Boecker.
With their South African perspective, the guests enriched the "8 against 88"(Opens in a new tab) day of action, with which the faculty sheds light on right-wing extremism, racism, populism and threats to democracy once a year. This time, the focus was on the "tension between social work and the police".
The Africans reported on their approach of not focusing on the possible misconduct of individual police officers, but rather addressing the structural conditions in training and actual police practice.
How did they experience their visit to Germany?
In an open discussion, the guests then described their thoughts on the exchange and their experiences in Dortmund. Bongane Morris Mzinyane was amazed that almost everything - timetables, display boards, information of all kinds - was written exclusively in German. "Google Lens was a great help. And I realized that police officers are good contacts in this regard, many speak English and were able to help me."
But apart from the language barrier, it was interesting to see, said Sununguray Charamba, "that Germany has kept its language. That is a good thing. Language is identity." Because what is a matter of course for Germans is just a pipe dream for many ethnic groups in Africa, whose languages are suppressed. Not only that: "In South Africa, your intelligence is measured by how well you speak English," Nomusa Munoangira interjected. "For many, this is a perfidious barrier."
He thinks a lot about the title "Doctor of Philosophy", said Bongane Morris Mzinyane, the title they are aiming for. "Philosophy means the acquisition of knowledge. That's exactly what our visit here in Dortmund is about. We are students for life. Learning is endless, especially in such a colorful world. We must never stop learning from each other."
What would you recommend to colleagues who are thinking about traveling to Germany? Tapiwanashe Gladys Simango replied emphatically: "My advice: Pack your bag and make sure you go there. Education is more than knowlegde. I downloaded an app to learn German. It didn't work. What worked was being here and experiencing everything for myself."
Outlook
In April, six prospective doctoral students will travel to South Africa to the UKZN to conduct joint research, learn and further develop their networks.
Clarissa Jede from Fachhochschule Dortmund will be flying with them. The stay is prepared and designed for a full month. A three-day symposium on the topic of "Research and Doctorates" will also take place during the month.
Prof. Michael Boecker and Dorothée Boecker will also be on site in April to consolidate the existing network with existing NGOs and to acquire new cooperation partners. The consistent inclusion of SDG-relevant discourses in teaching, research and society must be anchored more firmly and made more visible, particularly through development cooperation projects. Stakeholders from academia, civil society, Business Studies and politics must be consistently involved.
The next congress within the DAAD program will take place from 10 to 18 October 2024 in Harare, Zimbabwe. Once again, the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations will be at the center of the scientific discussion. This congress is also of great importance because it is organized in cooperation with the ICSD Africa Branch (International Consortium for Social Development) and thus offers excellent opportunities to enrich the existing network with additional cooperation partners from the Global South.
Further encounters with a duration of 5 to 30 days are planned until 2026 in Durban, Johannesburg, Harare and Fachhochschule Dortmund at UKZN, UJ, MSU and Fachhochschule Dortmund.
Note for students and doctoral candidates: If you are interested and would like to go to Zimbabwe in October or participate in one of the other meetings, please write a letter of motivation to the project coordinator: dorothee.boeckerfh-dortmundde
The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). The current funding period began in 2023 and ends in 2026.