EPISODE · Mar 10, 2026 · 27 MIN
86. Social Work in the Impact Space: Bridging Care and Systems Change
from Changemaker Q&A · host Humanitarian Changemakers Network
Social work is often reduced to “service delivery”, but it’s also one of the most important bridges between lived experience and systems change. This conversation breaks down social work as a distinct approach to impact — one that operates across the micro (individual support), meso (community and organisational change), and macro (policy and structural transformation) levels. Along the way, it maps the many roles social workers can hold — from clinical and school-based practice to disability, healthcare, and justice settings — and explores what the wider impact sector can learn from social work’s strengths: participatory practice, trauma-informed and relational approaches, and a values-driven view of policy as moral architecture. The episode also looks honestly at the profession’s pressures, including burnout, chronic underfunding, bureaucratic overload, and the rising complexity of interconnected social issues.📰 Read the accompanying article for this podcast episode here.Join the Changemaker Q&A Community & ASK YOUR QUESTIONS HERE💬 If you find this podcast valuable, it would really help us out to leave a rating & review wherever you're listening.Social Impact Foundations FREE Training Bundle Follow HCN on Instagram @humanitarianchangemakersFollow Tiyana on Instagram: @tiyanajThe views expressed in this podcast are those of Tiyana J & guests and are not reflective of all members of the Humanitarian Changemakers Network.
What this episode covers
Social work is often reduced to “service delivery”, but it’s also one of the most important bridges between lived experience and systems change. This conversation breaks down social work as a distinct approach to impact — one that operates across the micro (individual support), meso (community and organisational change), and macro (policy and structural transformation) levels. Along the way, it maps the many roles social workers can hold — from clinical and school-based practice to disability, healthcare, and justice settings — and explores what the wider impact sector can learn from social work’s strengths: participatory practice, trauma-informed and relational approaches, and a values-driven view of policy as moral architecture. The episode also looks honestly at the profession’s pressures, including burnout, chronic underfunding, bureaucratic overload, and the rising complexity of interconnected social issues.📰 Read the accompanying article for this podcast episode here.Join the Changemaker Q&A Community & ASK YOUR QUESTIONS HERE💬 If you find this podcast valuable, it would really help us out to leave a rating & review wherever you're listening.Social Impact Foundations FREE Training Bundle Follow HCN on Instagram @humanitarianchangemakersFollow Tiyana on Instagram: @tiyanajThe views expressed in this podcast are those of Tiyana J & guests and are not reflective of all members of the Humanitarian Changemakers Network.
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86. Social Work in the Impact Space: Bridging Care and Systems Change
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