It is a great pleasure to welcome colleagues, partners, educators, researchers, and social work practitioners to the Asia-Pacific Social Work Conference 2027 in Seoul.

Our theme, “Digital Transition, Social Work Practice, and Social Workers,” invites us to reflect on one of the most significant transformations of our time. Digital technologies bring new opportunities to strengthen practice, expand access to support, and amplify community voices. At the same time, they require careful consideration of ethics, human rights, equity, and inclusion. As social workers, we have a vital responsibility to ensure technological developments contribute to social justice, respect human dignity, and leave no one behind.

This conference offers an important space for learning and collaboration. By coming together, we can share experiences, explore new approaches, and shape the future of social work in ways that respond to rapidly changing societies.

On behalf of the International Federation of Social Workers, I thank the Korea Association of Social Workers and the Local Organising Committee for their leadership. I look forward to joining you in Seoul for these inspiring discussions.

It is my great pleasure to welcome you to the Asia Pacific Social Work Conference 2027.

The theme of the conference, “Digital Transition, Social Work Practice and Social Workers,” reflects one of the most significant changes shaping social work today. Digital technologies are transforming service delivery, research, and management, while simultaneously demanding deep reflection on ethics, human rights, inclusion, and professional identity.

The rich diversity that the Asia-Pacific region holds serves as an ideal foundation to learn from one another and build relevant, ethical, and inclusive digital approaches.
I hope this conference will provide an opportunity to exchange knowledge and build connections across countries and generations.
While this is an Asia-Pacific conference, we warmly welcome participants from around the world. Your perspectives and experiences will enrich our discussions and help us think beyond geographical boundaries.

I look forward to meeting you all in Seoul and sharing three inspiring days of learning, dialogue, and connection.

Welcome to APSWC 2027. See you in Seoul!

On behalf of the Asia-Pacific Association for Social Work Education (APASWE), I am delighted to welcome all participants to the Asia Pacific Social Work Regional Conference 2027 in Seoul, Korea.

This international gathering will provide a valuable opportunity to come together, exchange knowledge, share innovative practices, and strengthen our collective commitment to advancing social work education and the profession.

Centered on the theme “Digital Transition, Social Work Practice, and Social Workers,” this conference calls upon us to rethink social work education and frontline practice in an increasingly digitized world. It is vital that we equip the next generation of social workers with both digital literacy and strong ethical frameworks to navigate algorithmic bias, data confidentiality, and digital divides. My hope is that our discussions in Seoul will yield innovative pedagogical models and actionable frameworks that empower social workers to remain grounded in human dignity while embracing technological progress.

As we navigate increasingly complex social challenges, collaboration across countries, cultures, and disciplines is essential to building inclusive, equitable, and sustainable communities. I hope this conference will inspire meaningful dialogue, foster new partnerships, and strengthen regional and global solidarity in advancing social justice and human well-being.
I also express my sincere appreciation to the local hosts and organizing committee for bringing our international community together.

Welcome to Seoul, and I wish you all an inspiring conference!

Solidarity creates change, and change opens the future.

The changes we face today—inequality, crisis in care, climate crisis, and digital transition—are posing new questions to social work. In an era of such change, we must place people at the center and reaffirm the role of social work in protecting dignity, rights, and safety.

We hope this conference will serve as a venue for solidarity that crosses borders and cultures—sharing experiences and wisdom, and creating new possibilities for social work together. We express our deepest gratitude to social work professionals around the world whose practice and solidarity are building this space together.

May our meeting, starting in Seoul, lead to changes and transformations that foster safety, peace, and lives of human dignity for all citizens across the globe.

In 2027, let us meet in Seoul to connect together, practice together, and build a better future together.

In 2027, social work professionals from across Asia and the Pacific will meet in one place, Seoul. The reason we gather in one place—across our different languages, cultures, systems, and experiences—is ultimately because our hearts align in the same commitment: to safeguard a life of human dignity and to build a better society together.

Today's world throws questions before us that are difficult to answer with familiar solutions alone: inequality, care crisis, demographic shifts, climate crisis, and digital transition. In an era like this, social work demands all the more the power of solidarity—connecting person to person, sharing experiences and wisdom, and discovering new possibilities together.

We hope this conference will go beyond merely sharing the knowledge and practice accumulated in our respective places, becoming a time to understand each other's differences and imagine the future together. We hope that the encounters and dialogues started in Seoul will reach across the Asia-Pacific, becoming small waves that create a warmer and more inclusive society.

With a joyful heart, I await the year 2027 in Seoul with all of you.