International Social Work: Project ThRIvE

Empowering international social workers to engage in sustainable, mindful, conflict, and cultural sensitive practice

The DAAD-funded project ThRIvE (International Social Work from Crises to Sustainable Futures - Thinking from the Future, Recognizing & Interconnecting in the Past, Virtual & Embodied Empowerment in the Present), supports and promotes the international and scientific exchange about international social work in crisis contexts. It is based on a collaboration between the Technical University Würzburg-Schweinfurt (THWS) in Germany, the Modern University for Business and Science (MUBS) in Lebanon and the German Jordanian University (GJU) in Jordan. Until 2025, as part of the project, various in presence courses and different blended-learning mobilities are organized and carried out in the trinational cooperation that deal with the topics of international social work, crisis-resilience & sustainability in all three countries. This also includes documenting previously invisible knowledge from social work practice in crisis regions and making that knowledge accessible future social workers and the general public. In the ThRIvE project, the exchange and cooperation between the German, Lebanese, and Jordanian project partners, which was established with the previous projects HED, LOSWAC und AttiMa, was be continued.

Our Project Film – A Look Behind the Scenes

ThRIvE Highlights

Creative Arts for Sustainable Futures

Participants of a ThRIvE mobility in Germany 2024 / Credits: Hasan

Creative Arts for Sustainable Futures: In the ThRIvE project, students from Germany, Lebanon, and Jordan explored creative and sustainable methods for social change. Between 2023 and 2025, several international seminars and mobilities took place, fostering intercultural exchange, social innovation, and addressing topics such as sustainability, community wellbeing, youth empowerment, and peacebuilding.
[Learn more about the mobilities →]

Mindfulness-based Intercultural Communication & Resilience Trainings

Mindfulness-based Intercutural Communication & Resilience Training 2024 / Credits: Minuth

Mindfulness-based Intercultural Communication & Resilience Trainings were offered and conducted during the ThRIvE project in German-speaking and Arabic-speaking countries for students from Germany, Lebanon and Jordan, in practice-oriented seminars for female caregivers at the Zaatari camp, and for MBSR alumni. This teaching format integrates the evidence-based MBSR program with approaches from migration and peace education as well as embodied methods to strengthen metacognition, stress management, emotional intelligence, and intercultural awareness.

[Learn more about the trainings -->]

SWorld - Digitalizing and archiving Social Work history in Lebanon

Intergenerational Dialogue between pioneer & young social worker 2023 / Credits: SWorld

Social Work in Crises – Reseach, Education and Dissemination includes different projects. SWorld, founded by Aimée Ghanem with ThRIvE support, is a digital research and knowledge platform documenting the history and evolution of social work in Lebanon while fostering intergenerational dialogue through publications, podcasts, and online content. Alongside SWorld, the ThRIvE project connects students and professionals through Social Work Clubs, International Teaching Weeks, and online symposia. Together, these initiatives explore how social work responds to crises and empower practitioners to create meaningful, sustainable change.

[Learn more about SWorld -->]

Testimonials of Participants of ThRIvE Trainings and Mobilities

"This course was something entirely new, something truly fascinating. It touched my heart and sparked something within me. [...] This is the kind of course we need in universities: one that inspires young people to discover their own path in life. [...]" (Jiyoun Kim, 5th Semester Student, 2025)

"Thank you for this transformative mindfulness course! It has profoundly enriched my life, bringing increased self-awareness, calmness, and a deeper connection to the present moment. The practical tools and insights gained are invaluable [...]!"(3rd Semester Student, 2023)

"I find the combination of mindfulness and intercultural communication very enriching, because it brings 'intercultural communication' away from othering, [...]. I think it can be a very helpful individual tool in a world with so many power dynamics and norms in encounters.” (4th Semester Student, 2023)

The project is funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) with Federal Foreign Office funds as part of the programme line "Ta'ziz Science Cooperations 2023-2025".