INVEST Fellowship Programme

A recent INVEST Fellowship took GSSW Professor Kimberly Bender to the Univertsity of Turku in Finland.

How do we care for ourselves and each other? That question has driven much of Professor Kimberly Bender’s recent research on models of societal care, particularly for young people at the margins of society. In 2023, the University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work (GSSW) Winn Professor for Children and Youth visited Taiwan as a Fulbright Fellow at National Taipei University, where she studied youth participation in social change. In April and May 2026, an INVEST Fellowship took her to the University of Turku in Finland.

The INVEST Fellowship offers international postdoctoral and senior researchers short-term research visits to collaborate on the future of the welfare state, inequalities, and interventions. Specifically, Bender explored Finland’s Nordic Welfare System, with a particular focus on topics such as solidarity and civic virtue.

In Finland, Bender interviewed scholars and community professionals with expertise in social welfare and education. She was seeking to develop insights into what motivates Finland’s contemporary social investment and to understand the benefits and challenges of the Finnish social welfare system. She also gathered thoughts about the government potentially cutting or retracting the social welfare system. In addition, Bender explored individuals’ underlying beliefs about social responsibility and independence and the ways they found meaning in their social welfare and education work.

Bender says, “I hope to expand my current understanding of the ways in which we can care for ourselves and one another.” She notes that the fellowship will inform future research, scholarly publications and presentations, and teaching.