Macro Practice in Social Work for the 21st Century

Inspires students by tracing the careers of macro practitioners from grass roots organizers to agency executives

“A truly amazing book. It manages, as few have before, to cross over as both a textbook and a brilliant contribution to contemporary social work practice. As a textbook it's perfect for macro methods and community organizing courses. It's packed filled with wisdom, insight, and experience, all delivered with grace, clarity, and commitment.
-Robert Fisher, University of Connecticut

“Steve Burghardt makes macro practice and community organizing come alive. Instead of turning this important part of social work into a dry series of academic abstractions he shows the reader the wonderful and exciting opportunities that exist. He has inspired us to get out there and make change and help build our skills to effectively do so."
-Mike Eichler, San Diego State University

“This book provides a holistic vision for macro practice in the early 21st century. It argues very convincingly that effective macro practice requires a strategic vision, grounded in values, that integrates personal and community transformation. Burghardt provides a compass, as well as other tools, that macro practitioners can use to make significant social change. It promises to be a very useful resource for community and organizational practice in a number of fields.”
—Lorraine Gutierrez, University of Michigan

“Building upon his influential work on the professional and personal dimensions of organizing in The Other Side of Organizing, Burghardt articulates an innovative framework for macro practice that is mindful of current and future local, national and global economic, social and political trends. With an emphasis on capacity building from the bottom up, this book offers a challenging, yet practical, approach to justice-centered practice.”
—Cheryl Hyde, Temple University

This book develops a new paradigm suited to the quickly shifting dynamics of a globalized society, both more reliant on social networking, and yet seeking common connection and community. By focusing on how practitioners can make meaningful, strategic choices regardless of their formal roles and responsibilities, the author breathes new life into key issues ranging from how to respond to both diversity and oppression, the vital use of the internet for organizing and the limits to “virtual trust,” and co-leadership development.

This text is appropriate for upper-level undergraduate and graduate-level students enrolled in courses such as Macro Practice, Community Organizing, Leadership, and Management/Administration in social work and allied departments.