Social Justice Jam: Spaces for Change

The Social Justice Jam: Spaces for Change was a three-day event offering a cross-cultural and interdisciplinary virtual programme. Its aim was to design solutions to real-world challenges faced by two communities in the Global North and South.

While it is important to embed sustainability and social justice in education, a mutual understanding of these principles, and how they can be used to address challenges equitably, must also be developed. 

This collaboration between the University of Leeds and the University of Pretoria, in partnership with LS14 Trust and Mothong African Heritage sought to design solutions to specific challenges related to community space access, use, and management in Mamelodi, Pretoria, and Seacroft, Leeds. Participants co-created ideas for solutions with facilitators as co-learners.

This Social Justice Jam was proposed as a prototype course for a new suite of curriculum designs currently developed by the University of Leeds’ Discovery Delivery Group. These will be made available as open Blueprints to create innovative and expansive learning formats, to be scaffolded approaches to support new Discovery methods of learning, such as the Student-Organised Unbounded Learning (SOUL) modules.

These modules provide students with a critically reflective learning and assessment framework allowing them to gain credit for engaging in experiential learning as an individual or as part of a group, including learning from co- and extra-curricular experience(s). 

“I strongly believe that the Jam, even though a pilot, was a valuable learning experience for all involved, me included. It enabled us to innovate in terms of education design, partnership building and virtual implementation and provided a rich platform for all participants to share their views, engage in intercultural exchange and collaborate on solving community challenges. 

“The Jam managed to build a community of people interested in Social Justice and SDGs’ localisation but also for people who are keen to experiment with innovative pedagogies and diverse perspectives in Higher Education and community engagement.”
- Dr Vasiliki Kioupi

"The Social Justice Jam proved to be a great space to rethink narratives around the manner in which social justice projects should be supported. Participants from Pretoria emphasised financial self-sufficiency in this regard and engaged in lively debate with Leeds participants who were arguing for greater state support. Watching this dialogue and debate between two interconnected yet distinct parts of the world was a memorable experience.”
- Dr Radhika Borde

“Participating in the Social Justice Jam was an enriching experience. Collaborating with the Discovery Delivery Group, the Digital Education Service at the University of Leeds, the University of Pretoria, the ls14 Trust in Leeds, and the community of Mamelodi was inspiring.

“Together, we tackled community space access and management challenges, emphasising inclusive, community-driven approaches to achieve social justice. I witnessed firsthand the transformative impact of local storytelling, exemplified by Dr Mabena in Mamelodi, which not only supported environmental conservation but also fostered a collective drive for positive societal change. This experience affirmed the importance of grassroots participation and highlighted the critical role of local knowledge in promoting equitable outcomes globally.

“Moving forward, I am committed to advocating for tailored solutions that respect local contexts, rejecting one-size-fits-all approaches. My motto remains, “Local problems demand tailored solutions, not a top-down, one-size-fits-all approach!”
- Dr Tamuka Chekero

“The Social Justice Jam provided a unique opportunity for me as a student to obtain real-life experience in facilitating a cross-cultural and cross-institutional piece of work. I feel this learning could not have been replicated in a classroom environment. Understanding the challenges facing both communities and hearing inspiring stories from the people collaborating for positive change has spurred me on to learn more about community development work and radical pedagogy for my independent research. As a mature student from the Lifelong Learning Centre at Leeds who is studying for an interdisciplinary undergraduate degree, this experience was invaluable to putting into practice much of my learning about identity, inequality, community development and leadership. It has been excellent to not only support the work both communities are undertaking but to see first-hand how my degree might lend itself to practice in the future.”
- Faith Castle, Undergraduate Student – BA Professional Studies, Lifelong Learning Centre, University of Leeds
 
“I wanted to reach out and congratulate you all on hosting such a successful Jam Session. As a facilitator, I was thoroughly impressed by the collaborative spirit and the navigation through the challenges we faced. It was evident that a great deal of thought and effort went into planning and executing this event, and the results speak for themselves”
- Ronald Bafana, Doctoral student, Centre for the Advancement of Scholarship at the University of Pretoria
 
"The social justice jam was an eye-opening and engaging experience, where we got to learn about the Seacroft and Mamelodi communities through local knowledge, and working together with participants across cultures through creative modes such as media, art and sound to generate potential solutions."  
- Diane Teo, Postgraduate student, School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds

Project co-leads

Academic lead: Dr Vasiliki Kioupi.
Hosts: Dr Vasiliki Kioupi and Dr Tafadzwa Mushonga, 
Student Co-Hosts: Annalisa Mack and Rishabh Bezbaruah (University of Leeds) and Agnetta Nyabundi (University of Pretoria).

Further Information 

The Social Justice Jam was an activity of Curriculum Broadening as part of the Discovery Delivery Group led by Professor Chrissi Nerantzi as a Curriculum Redefined Project and sponsored by Professor Kenny McDowall.

The organisers, hosts and facilitators of the jam include Dr Vasiliki Kioupi from the University of Leeds and, Dr Tafadzwa Mushonga from the University of Pretoria, Dr Mabena from Mothong African Heritage in Mamelodi and Naomi Roxby Wardle from ls14trust in Seacroft and further educators and students from Leeds and Pretoria.

If you would like to know more about this project, please email the Horizons Institute at horizons@leeds.ac.uk