This book introduces an innovative, experiential and participatory approach to social work education and community transformation. Community Social Labs (CSL) is systematically presented as both an epistemological framework and methodology for co-creating locally grounded solutions to problems that confront communities in the global south.

With a focus on empirical experiences from Uganda, Rwanda, and Tanzania, this volume challenges readers to recognize communities as co-creators and owners of knowledge, whilst appreciating the role of universities as useful catalysts for societal change. As pedagogy, CSLs offer experiential and context-responsive learning, and they aim to democratize the curriculum to embed local knowledges. Stories directly from the field are used to demonstrate this, narrated first hand by students who participated in this innovative methodology. Thus, this collection offers a balanced and objective assessment of the potential of the approach, and the challenges that come with it.

Contributing new insights to the decolonization and indigenization of social work, this book will be a useful tool for scholars and students who wish to advance and challenge their knowledge and social work practice, as well as professionals and organizations in both government and civil society.