Community Social Labs and Social Work

"This timely volume on Community Social Labs presents a practice grounded vision for co-creation, empowerment and sustainability, linking universities and communities in respectful partnership. It advances decolonised, context sensitive social work and encourages innovative responses to complex social realities. The contributions demonstrate how collaborative learning, indigenous knowledge and shared agency can strengthen curricula, research and practice. An inspiring guide for educators, practitioners and students committed to meaningful, community change."

Dr Pascal Rudin, PhD,Interim Secretary-General, International Federation of Social Workers, Switzerland

"The book gives us great insights into a non-conventional approach to training social workers and an innovative way to tap into the power of community-driven action to address complex social challenges and cause social transformation among poor communities. I recommend it for all those who seek to awaken community power and co-create solutions towards safer, stronger and productive communities."

Dr Denis Muhangi, PhD, Head of Department, Social Work & Social Administration, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda

"Many of us interested in decolonizing and indigenizing social work have critically unpacked the Western assumptions currently shaping social work practice. We lack, however, concrete models for change. This volume fills that gap, providing the concrete model of a Community Social Lab (CSL). This moves us beyond conceptualization and into direct practice. The volume draws on concrete cases studies of CSL implementation, describing ways to bring its core ideas of co-creation, indigenization and sustainability directly into social work practice, as well as how we must change social work education – and the broader university – to engender change that is guided by real needs at the grassroots. A much-needed resource for my teaching and research."

Erika Gubrium, Professor, Department of Social Work, Child Welfare & Social Policy, Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway

"Community social labs are introduced as a way to ensure meaningful collaboration with communities to co-design solutions to local problems. This new book provides readers with a step-by-step guide to initiating and using a social lab at the community level, promising a genuine and co-equal approach to local participation that strengthens indigenization. Highly recommended educators and practitioners in social development and related fields."

Lynne M. Healy, Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor Emerita Professor Emerita, University of Connecticut, and Main Representative to the UN, International Association of Schools of Social Work, USA

"This important scholarly contribution interweaves classroom teaching and community-based social work practice to advance bottom-up problem-solving. Integrating critical theory, participatory research, ubuntu, and social innovation, it compellingly demonstrates the co-creative Community Social Labs methodology across three African contexts."

Linda Kreitzer, Professor Emerita, University of Calgary, Faculty of Social Work, Canada