World Social Work Day

Sharing Wisdom As We Are Weaving

This year’s World Social Work Day theme was ‘Strengthening Intergenerational Solidarity for Enduring Wellbeing’. Every year the Broken Hill Social Work Network come together to celebrate this day, break down the true meaning of each year’s theme, share valuable insight and facilitate an activity that is thoughtful, sustainable and creative.

This year, the network focused on the social work professions dedication to building connections that value the wisdom of elders, while empowering younger generations to tackle today’s challenges and envision a better future. The local theme for the event was ‘Sharing Wisdom as We Are Weaving’. In line with the network’s commitment to environmental social work, they used recycled materials for the weaving activity and wrote down words of wisdom that was shared with the group.

“I’m so grateful for the amazing social work network that Broken Hill has. I share this profession with so many inspiring and passionate people and the turn out today solidified that,”  Hannah Dean, Social Work Academic at the Broken Hill University Department of Rural Health (BHUDRH) said.

Social Work students who are on placement in Broken Hill had the opportunity to attend this event, tasked with asking Social Work professionals what their piece of wisdom is. Each student was able to take away a valuable piece of advice and immerse themselves in a rural community event.

“We had students attend the event and I’m so proud of the professionalism and interest they all showed. It was a great opportunity for them to network outside of a university setting and ask people in a rural social work setting, what advice would you give me?”  Hannah said.

Weaving together the group could connect, sharing practices, and telling stories, creating an opportunity to exchange knowledge and wisdom across generations. Once the morning was over, the network had completed a beautiful piece of art that everyone had a hand in making.

“The network collectively decided that the weave would be on display at the BHUDRH as it was recognised by the network as the centre for social work, somewhere that social workers feel connected as a profession,”  Hannah said.

The BHUDRH are honoured to display the work but recognises that it is owned by the network.

“We joked at the event that it can become the Sisterhood of the Travelling Weave and that it can be displayed elsewhere within the community overtime,” Hannah laughed.

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If you’re looking to make a difference, checkout our Placements page  for more information about rural placement opportunities.