Prof. Dr. Matthias Drilling
Prof. Dr. Matthias Drilling
ZHAW
School of Social Work
Institute of Diversity and Social Integration
Pfingstweidstrasse 96
8037 Zürich
Work at ZHAW
Focus
- Homelessness Research and Action
- Sustainable Neighbourhood / Urban Development
- Ageing in Place / Caring Community
- Social-spatial figurations of refugee camps and camp-like settings
Experience
- Professor
Department Social Work, Institute Diversity and Social Participation
03 / 2025 - today - Visiting Professor
University of Calgary CA, School of Architecture, Planning, and Landscape
09 / 2024 - 02 / 2025 - Head of Institute
University of Applied Sciences FHNW, School of Social Work FHNW
06 / 2011 - 08 / 2024 - Lecturer (parttime)
University of Basel, Institut of Geography
2008 - 2017 - Professor
University of Applied Sciences FHNW, School of Social Work FHNW
1999 - 2011 - Research Assistant
University of Basel, Institut of Psychology
1997 - 1999 - Managing Director
Human Rights Organization Switzerland-Philippines
1996 - 1999 - Research Assistant
University of Basel, Institut of Philosophy
1995 - 1997 - Research Fellow
University of Basel, Institut of Geography
1993 - 1995
Education and Continuing education
Education
- Consultant (licenced)
Sustainable German Building Council
2022 - 2023 - MAS Leadership and Change Management / Institute of Applied Psychology
Zurich University of Applied Sccence
2013 - 2016 - Spatial Planner MAS ETH / Spatial Planning
ETH Zurich
2007 - 2009 - PhD / Social Geography
University Freiburg
2001 - 2004 - M.A. / Social Geography
University Freiburg
1987 - 1993
Network
Membership of networks
- Editorial Board Urban Planning
- Editorial Board European Social Work Research
- Editor series on Neighbourhood Research at Springer
- President ad interim, Swiss Aid Programme at Swiss Solidarity
- MC member Switzerland, EU-COST Programm Participatory Approaches with Older Adults (PAAR-net, 36 countries)
- Ageing, Place, and Home. Horizon_MSCA-DN-2021. Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (11 PhD researcher at 10 European Universities).
ORCID digital identifier
Awards
- Visiting Scholar Award
University of Calgary / Canada
01 / 2024 - Recognition Award
Foundation Institute for Applied Psychology IAP
03 / 2016 - Dissertation Prize
University of Freiburg
08 / 2005 - Research scholarship Ghana
Carl Duisberg Gesellschaft
02 / 1991 - Excellence scholarship
Friedrich-Ebert Stiftung
06 / 1990
Social media
Projects
- Examining socio-spatial and health-related determinants of refugees’ social integration to improve the Swiss Integration Agenda / Project leader / Start imminent
- Global Goals, Local Plans: Swiss–Iranian Collaboration Towards Age-Friendly Cities / Project leader / ongoing
- Voices of diverse older populations in shaping age-friendly environments / Project leader / ongoing
- Camps and Camp-Like Settings in Urban Environments: Bridging Humanitarian and Development Activities / Co-project leader / ongoing
- Frontline work in humanitarian disasters: Bridging state and non-state rationalities towards region-based, multi-layered crisis management / Project leader / ongoing
Publications
-
Temesvary, Zsolt; Roduit, Sabrina; Drilling, Matthias,
2025.
Health vulnerabilities of undocumented central and eastern European migrants in Switzerland.
Journal of Migration and Health.
11(100327).
Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmh.2025.100327
-
Drilling, Matthias; Suero, Pamela; Al-Shoubaki, Hind; Neuhaus, Fabian, eds.,
2025.
1st edition.
London:
Routledge.
Regions and Cities ; 159.
ISBN 978-1-003-14444-1.
Available from: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003144441
-
Drilling, Matthias,
2025.
Book review - Pragmatics of community organization, Bill Lee
[review of Lee, Bill, 2025. Pragmatics of Community Organization. Toronto: CommonAct Press. ISBN 9780921159261].
The British Journal of Social Work.
Available from: https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcaf128
Publications before appointment at the ZHAW
- Drilling, M., Tabin, J.-P., Lequet, M., Böhnel, M., & Dittmann, J., Lepori, A. & Bertini-Soldà, L. (2024) Becoming an advocate for the voiceless of a system. The impact of Swiss Solidarity's financial support for organizations during the Covid-19 pandemic. Evaluation report. ISOS Working Paper 01/2024. Muttenz: ISOS. ISBN 978-3-03979-001-2.
- Drilling, M., Dittmann, J., Böhnel, M. & Iyadurai, G. (2024) Haphazard Approaches to Pandemic Planning: Exploring 'We' and 'The Others' Dynamics. In: Schiff, R. et al. (ed.) Pandemic preparedness and homelessness: International lessons from COVID-19. Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press. S. 437-458
- Al-Shoubaki, H.; Psychogyios, D.; Drilling, M.; Chatziefthymiou, Y.; Fragkou, T.; Costa, A.M.; Tsangrassoulis, A. (2024) A Human-Centered Shelter Design for People on the Move in the Al-Sahel Region. Sustainability 2024, 16, 9127. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16209127
- Drilling, M., Küng, M., & Dittmann, J. (2024) Homelessness in Switzerland. Federalist pathways between ignoring, passing on responsibility for and proactive prevention of homelessness. In C. Bevan (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Global Perspectives on Homelessness, Law & Policy. London: Taylor & Francis. S. 205–221.
- Temesvary, Z., Roduit, S. & Drilling, M. (2023) Routes into destitution. Vulnerabilities and resources of Central and Eastern European migrants in Switzerland. LIVES Swiss Centre of Expertise in Life Course Research. https://doi.org/10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2023.100
- Drilling, M. (2023) Recherche sur le sans-abrisme dans le mode d’un travail social transformateur: à propos de la relation entre la connaissance, la pertinence et l’innovation sociale. In: Maeder, P., Chimienti, M., Cretton, V., Maggiori, C., Probst, I. & Rullac, S. (eds.) Innovation et intervention sociales: impacts, méthodes et mises enoeuvre dans les domaines de la santé et de l'action sociale. Zurich/Genève: Seismo. S. 149-179.
- Drilling, M., Küng, M., Mühlethaler, E. & Dittmann, J. (2022) Homelessness in Switzerland. Understandings, policies and strategies of the cantons and communes. Federal Office of Housing, Bern. ISBN: 978-3-03979-000-5.
- Temesvary, Z. & Drilling, M. (2022) Beyond the state: Developments and trends in critical social work in Switzerland and Hungary. International Social Work, 1-13.
- Roduit, S.; Dittmann, J.; Dietrich, S.; Drilling, M. & Young, C. (2022) Être sans-abri en temps de crise sanitaire: l'ambivalence des réponses institutionnelles. In: Mimouni, S. & Rosenstein, E. (ed.) COVID-19: Tome II: Les politiques sociales à l'épreuve de la pandémie. Zurich: Seismo. 157-172.
- Drilling, M., Küng, M., Mühlethaler, E. & Dittmann, J. (2022) Homelessness in Switzerland Understandings, policies and strategies of the cantons and communes. Federal Office of Housing, Bern.
- Temesvary, Z., Roduit, S. & Drilling, M. (2022) Conceptualising destitution with focus on Central and Eastern European citizens living in Switzerland. LIVES Working papers, 92, 1-59.
- Drilling, M. (2022) Social work as a transformative science: the importance of relevance structures in knowledge production. The British Journal of Social Work, 2949–2965.
- Drilling M., Grove H., Ioannou B., Moulaert T. (2021) Towards a Structural Embeddedness of Space in the Framework of the Social Exclusion of Older People. In: Walsh K., Scharf T., Van Regenmortel S., Wanka A. (eds.) Social Exclusion in Later Life. International Perspectives on Aging. S. 193 – 208.
- Drilling, M., Negash, S. & Wagaw, B. (2021) Housing and the Social Investment State: An Underestimated Relationship. Social Policy (14) 1, 35-50.
- Temesvary, Z., Roduit, S. & Drilling, M. (2021) Conceptualising destitution: Theoretical understanding and practical relevance. Dialog: Hungarian Journal of Social Work 8(2).
- Drilling, M., Mühlethaler, E., Iyadurai, G. , Dittmann, J. (2021) Homelessness Research and Policy in Switzerland - a first country report embedded in the UN and European framework. European Journal of Homelessness (15) 1, 183-210.
- Drilling, M.; Schnur, O. (2020) Neighbourhood Research from a Geographical Perspective. Die Erde - Journal of the Geographical Society of Berlin (150) 2, 48-60.
- Drilling, M., Dittmann, J., Ondrusova, D., Teller, N., Mondelaers, N. (2020) Measuring Homelessness by City Counts - Experiences from European Cities. European Journal of Homelessness (14) 3, 87-112.
- Drilling, M., Mühlethaler, E. & Iyadurai, G. (2020) Homelessness: First Country Report Switzerland. ISOS Working Paper, 1-76.
- Moulaert, T., Wanka, A. & Drilling, M. (2018) The Social Production of Age, Space and Exclusion: Towards a More Theory-Driven Understanding of Spatial Exclusion Mechanisms in Later Life. Sociální studia/Social Studies (15) 1, 9-23.
- Wanka, A., Thibauld, T. & Drilling, M. (2018) From Environmental Stress to Spatial Expulsion - Re-thinking Con-cepts of Socio-Spatial Exclusion in Later Life. International Journal of Ageing and Later Life (13) 1, 1-27.