Short description:

Participatory Governance, Social Work and Social Policy explores the intersection of participatory governance, inclusive social welfare, social work, and artificial intelligence in the transformation of social services systems worldwide.

Long description:

Participatory Governance, Social Work and Social Policy explores the intersection of participatory governance, inclusive social welfare, social work, and artificial intelligence in the transformation of social services systems worldwide.

Rooted in the experiences and insights of professionals such experts, policy practitioners, and civic innovators, the book provides a timely examination of how digital tools, especially AI, are reshaping civic engagement, helping professions such as social work, democratic accountability, and welfare systems worldwide. Based on outcomes from the Ronda meetings of experts in 2024 and 2025, as well as a UN side event seminar aligned with the annual session of the Commission for Social Development in 2025, this volume offers theoretical grounding, comparative case studies, and practical recommendations. Addressing global trends such as post-COVID recovery, climate transitions, population aging, and digital transformation, with a special focus on ensuring inclusivity, equity, and ethical use of AI, it also analyses the problems related to social protection and social services in different contexts, with special attention to the problems of local administrations, which in many countries are responsible for the provision of social services.

This book is essential reading for all scholars, students, and professionals working in social work, social policy and governance looking to build welfare systems that are not only technologically advanced, but also equitable, transparent, and genuinely responsive to community needs.

Table of Contents:

'Introduction. Introduction.  Part I. Participation, Digital Innovation, and Social Services: Global Dynamics and Future Challenges.  1. The Fundamentals of Participation in the Context of New Developments.  2. ProSocial AI as a Catalyst for Social Welfare and Participation: A Multidimensional Perspective.  3. Children, Social Protection, and AI Bias: An Empirical Study of Intra-Country Disparities through a Citizen Participation Lens.  4. Participatory Green Social Work and Living Knowledge Labs: Inclusive Nature-Based Solutions and Ethical AI in Socio-Ecological Transitions.  5. Shaping Territorial Priorities through Citizen Participation.  6. AI Public Governance and Data Capitalism: New Challenges and Old Victims.  7. Co-design, Participation and Social Welfare: Redefining Social Services in AI Societies.  8. From Welfare State to Welfare Society: New Roles for Citizen Participation and Digital Technologies.  9. Using AI for Social Good: How AI Can Support Social Protection Systems.  Part II. Participatory Governance, AI, and Social Services: Country Cases.  10. Pathways to Full and Equal Participation in Social Welfare in Finland.  11. The Social and Solidarity Economy in Morocco: A Lever for Promoting Social Justice.  12. Embedding Participation in Mental Health Policy and Practice: A Case Study from Ireland.  13. Participation, Social Work, and Service Delivery in Thailand’s Social Policy Landscape.  14. AI, Participation and Social Welfare in Northeast Asia: A Political Economy Analysis.  15. Local Engagement and Social Welfare in Indonesia: Participatory Governance and Institutional Practice in the Age of AI.  16. Participation and Social Welfare in Spain: How to Achieve Social Innovation through Participation.  17. Reimagining Community Engagement and Participatory Governance in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: Reflections from the Global South.  18. Community Organising in Sweden: A Local Initiative in Times of Transformation.  Part III. Global Organizations, AI, and Social Participation.  19. Participation and Well-being: Perspectives from the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW).  20. AI, Participation, and Social Work Education: The IASSW Viewpoint.  21. Participation at the Crossroads of Social Welfare: The ICSW Perspective.  22. Summing Up.  Annex I. Ronda Declaration 2025 On Meaningful Participation, Inclusive Social Welfare, and Democratic Local Governance.