Purpose: This paper explores perspectives on social justice, equity and agency when schools address health, wellbeing and sustainability challenges. Design/methodology/approach: The paper draws on a literature review of educational research. The analysis is narrative, highlighting how binary conceptions of equity, social justice and agency are…

The high incarceration rate and systemic racism in the United States, along with entrenched social barriers, highlight the need for creative solutions to help formerly incarcerated individuals (FIIs) reintegrate successfully. This paper highlights social entrepreneurial ventures (SEVs) as powerful agents of social change, underscoring the…

Youth have been, and continue to be, at the forefront of radical positive social change that advances the human condition. Historically major social movements seeking change, equality, and social justice have been driven by youth. The role of youth in facilitating social change is particularly relevant today more than half of the world's…

This article addresses the question of how theatre interventions as elements of a participatory and action-oriented research design can contribute to justice-oriented Caring Community processes. Caring Communities are local initiatives that strengthen everyday solidarity through civic engagement and neighbourhood support, link informal and formal…

This article describes how a secularized version of Lectio Divina is used within the classroom as a model for engaging in anti-racism and social justice discussions. Lectio Divina is an ancient tool for understanding texts. From its religious beginnings, it has been adapted to its secular forms for critical contemplative practice in twenty…

Drawing on theories of antiracist pedagogy, pandemic pedagogy, and racial identity development, this article demonstrates the benefits of campus-wide virtual conversations, arguing that they provide students in particular with salient opportunities to synthesize antiracist theory and praxis while further developing their racial identities. Using…

Despite the growing recognition of social workers' important role in addressing environmental injustices, there is a gap in the literature concerning approaches for educating social work students about these issues. This article examines the effectiveness of a collaborative community-based intervention whereby students, community members, and…

The article provides an overview of the conclusions reached by the British Academy Childhood Policy Programme in its final report. The programme explored the role of the state in childhood and how children and childhood are conceptualised in policy-making. The aim was to apply an inter-disciplinary social sciences and humanities lens in order to…

This paper explores the social media literacies of Dakari, a 16-year-old Black teen reader, writer, and activist, within a broader 3-month multi-case study on diverse teens' online literacies. The focus is on Dakari's multimodal literacy practices related to social justice activism and civic engagement. The study highlights how social media…

Positive youth development (PYD), while embraced in many sectors of youth work, has faced criticism for its primary emphasis on positive personal change and adaptation, without a strong emphasis on social justice and culture, especially relevant for African Americans. Additional models of PYD addressing these conceptual gaps have emerged, however…

One model for engaging young people to be more civically minded and to help them develop a critically conscious sociopolitical identity is through youth organizing and participatory action research. Over the last 3 years, I have worked with Leaders Organizing 2 Unite and Decriminalize (LOUD) members--a majority of which we system-involved--who…

In today's rapidly advancing world, scientific literacy is becoming increasingly crucial. The ability to understand and critically evaluate scientific information is a key skill for navigating an increasingly complex and technology-driven society. Developing scientific literacy not only boosts individual knowledge but also promotes 21st-century…

This current study measured the impact of a one-time semester-long course-based civic engagement activity on student learning and participant impact, particularly participants' willingness to engage in community dialogue and promote awareness of social justice issues within their communities. The service-learning project involved on-campus and…

This article explores how the colonisation of womens bodies, as perpetuated through the art trope of the female nude, has constructed a specific bodily ideal that still resonates and informs how we view women's bodies in contemporary life. I address how the same narratives that restrict our understanding of the female body, also restrict our…

Developing critical consciousness, the awareness and action against marginalizing and oppressive forces, is a way for future teachers to identify and actively work against the inequities reproduced through traditional schooling. The purpose of this qualitative study is to examine how Latinx high school students enrolled in Pathways2Teaching, a…