August 30-31, 2022 — 6:30p.m. (EDT)

Online event via YouTube

ABOUT THE EVENT

“Social assistance is, above all, Love.”

Paiva Netto

Throughout history, social and human ills have always led to individual and collective actions aimed at helping people. At the forefront of Brazil’s philanthropic organizations is the Legion of Good Will (LGW), which was founded (on January 1, 1950) with the ideals of Goodness and principles of Solidarity and Love for others as Jesus has taught us. Inspired by these values, the LGW has established technical-operational and theoretical-methodological work processes over the years. These were developed by qualified teams that provide social assistance in accordance with the directives and technical guidelines of this policy, without losing sight of the principles that originated the Organization.

The Third Sector has experienced remarkable moments. In this context, civil society organizations like the LGW have dedicated themselves to implementing the guidelines of social assistance and complying with its ethical and legal precepts. The years of experience, and the processes it has adopted for professionalizing its employees, highlight the great possibilities these organizations have of helping, not just in practical ways, but also by building knowledge about social assistance.

The LGW’s International Congress on Social Assistance aims to present this scenario, deepen the theoretical knowledge of the attendees, and debate the importance and contributions of the private sector, and its partnership with the public sector in defending the rights of vulnerable people. These rights are aimed at guaranteeing access to quality public policies that have the potential to respond to emerging social issues in Brazil and the world over the coming decades.

PROGRAM

August 30 (Tuesday)

.: Inaugural talk: “Civil society organizations and the realization of social assistance rights”

Speaker: Maria Yvelônia dos Santos Araújo Barbosa, national secretary of Social Assistance

.: Talk: “The contributions of private entities in strengthening the social assistance network”

Speaker: Rossana Costa França, LGW’s social and technical advisor

.: Talk: “Integration between the direct and indirect offers of the SUAS [Unified Social Assistance System]”

Speaker: Célio Vanderlei Morais, a psychologist with a master’s in Political Sociology

August 31 (Wednesday)

.: Talk: “Intersectorality in social assistance, an instrument for the realization of social protection”

Speaker: Renato Francisco dos Santos Paula, Ph.D. in Social Service and a professor on the Social Service course of the Federal University of Goiás (UFG).

.: Talk: Social Organizations and local solutions to guarantee food rights: a global view

Speaker: Rafael Zavala, Graduated in Zootechnics, with a master’s in Sustainable Agriculture and a doctorate in Policies for Rural Development. He is currently FAO representative in Brazil.

.: Panel: “Network articulation for guaranteeing social assistance rights”

Panelists: Kléber Maricato, LGW’s manager in Londrina (Brazil), and Idália Pereira, LGW’s regional supervisor.

.: Panel: “Social organizations and networking processes”

Panelists from the LGW of Bolivia: 

Robert Alejandro Pari Flores is in charge of the social area of the LGW’s José de Paiva Netto Community Center in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia;

Jenny Mancilla is a social worker at the Legion of Good Will of La Paz, Bolivia.

Panelists from the LGW of Portugal: 

Beatriz Queirós is a hygienist for the LGW of Portugal’s Happy Smile program. She has been working with oral health in the community since 2019;

Eloísa de Sá Teixeira is a psychologist at the LGW’s Social Center in Lisbon, Portugal. She’s specialized in Education and Vocational Guidance; 

Susana Veiga is a social worker at the LGW of Porto, Portugal; 

Vera Ferreira is a social worker at the LGW of Coimbra, Portugal. She has a postgraduate qualification in Intervention in Deviant Behaviors.