The International Commission of AvenirSocial – the Swiss professional association for social work – took seriously the call from the People’s Global Summit to promote the People’s Charter for an Eco-Social World (2022) as a living document, to be interpreted and implemented in various local contexts and cultures.
That is why AvenirSocial held a meeting in September 2024 to consider how to be involved as a professional association. The meeting included members of its International Committee along with IFSW Secretary-General, Rory Truell who was invited as he was to co-facilitator and co-writer of the People’s Charter.
In spring 2025, AvenirSocial established a working group responsible for adapting the international Charter to the Swiss context. This resulted in the creation of the Charter for an Ecosocial Work in Switzerland.
This new document complements the revised Code of Ethics for Social Work in Switzerland by providing social workers with practical advice on how to turn global issues into local action. It also emphasises social workers’ ethical responsibility to actively promote socio-ecological change.
The Charter for an Ecosocial Switzerland calls on professionals, organisations, and schools to redefine the scope of social work and contribute to the urgent need for transformation. There is no time to waste in addressing the current climate crisis. Social work must build bridges between social justice and ecological sustainability, and between local realities and global processes.
We can recommend other countries and professional associations to co-create their own ecosocial charters and strengthen our collective commitment to a more just and sustainable world.