On November 10, 2023, the Department of Social Policy organizes the 3rd annual social policy conference “Social Policy Responses: From Old Issues to The New Challenges” at the Faculty of Philosophy of Vilnius University.
The aim of the conference this year is to analyse the responses, impacts, challenges and opportunities of social policy in response to various global and personal crises. Every crisis, whether it be psychological, intrapersonal, societal, or global, has the potential to either weaken or strengthen the person, community or nation by providing new insights and opportunities. During a lifetime, one can face both normative and non-normative crises on personal, group, and community levels. Additionally, in the last couple of years, we experienced several global crises—firstly, the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns; then, the invasion of Ukraine and the outcomes of following economic restrictions. Crises are characterized by a variety of psychological, social, economic, and political outcomes for individuals, groups, and communities, which in turn offer new challenges, opportunities, and directions for social policy theory, practice, research, and education.
Discussing social problems and social policy with researchers, policymakers and practitioners develops social policy research and enhances the practice towards the more sustainable functioning of society. The conference is organised to consolidate the community of social policy academics and practitioners on an international scale and to provide a platform for the annual discussion of relevant social policy challenges, trends, developments and future scenarios.