Reimagining Macro Social Work to Advance Environmental Justice and Health Equity in the Climate Crisis
The climate crisis, which is currently recognized as a "threat multiplier" by the United Nations, exacerbates health disparities, deepens structural inequities, and often disproportionately affects marginalized communities globally. While social work values maintain a commitment to social justice, dignity and worth of the person and integrity, macro-level interventions remain constrained by national and neoliberal paradigms. These limitthe profession's capacity to address global and transnational challenges such as disaster capitalism, food insecurity, and the financialization and dispossession of essential resources. As the climate crisis deepens, macro social work should reconfigure its theoretical commitments and practical applications to center environmental justice and health equity. This paper discusses the limitations of macro social work in addressing climate-induced social and public health crises and proposes a reimagining of macro practice through intersectional and interdisciplinary lenses to interrogate the structural roots of these crises.
Authors
- Neena Albarus
Institutions
- University of California System (US)
- University of California, Berkeley (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Social Work in Public Health
- Published
- 2025-08-17
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1080/19371918.2025.2547006
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.82