About

What is PRAXIS?

PRAXIS is a radical education project established in 2008 with a firm belief in the concepts of critical reflection, social and political action, and the central role of popular education in achieving a society based on equality and social justice.

In 2008 PRAXIS developed a position paper on popular education and the Communiversity. PRAXIS has a core working group that meets as a popular education circle to critically reflect on our activism and ideas. This core working group plays an important role in developing other aspects of PRAXIS and the Communiversity model. Our members also engage in facilitating other community-based popular education circles.

What is the Equality Studies Centre in UCD? 

The Equality Studies Centre is in the School of Social Justice, UCD. Work in Equality Studies within the School is currently concentrated in four main areas: development and global north/south relations, minorities and discrimination, gender, and class structures. Equality studies aims not just to understand but to change the world. It is therefore essentially normative and sees knowledge as having a role to play in transforming social structures. The Centre believes that the study of equality entails a fundamental shift in how research is conducted.

What is a Knowledge Exchange Forum? 

This ‘Communiversity Knowledge Exchange Forum’ is one aspect of the Communiversity model and is a new way of linking the work of the university and civil society. This event is being jointly organised by the Equality Studies Centre, UCD; PRAXIS; Trademark Belfast and Kilbarrack CDP . It will not only improve research knowledge on how to address inequalities through dialogue between ‘experts’ and those ‘experiencing injustice’, it will also create new synergies for activism and social change at the community level. In 2008, in conjunction with Kilbarrack Community Development Project and UCD Equality Studies Centre, PRAXIS organised a seminar to provide a space for critical reflection on ‘citizenship’ and activism. Over 50 people attended this seminar.

How is this Forum connected to the concept of the Communiversity?

PRAXIS is currently developing & working towards the concept of a Communiversity which will be a broad structure within which popular education, social justice & equality will be central themes. PRAXIS & the Idea of a Communiversity relate to the development of a network of alternative educational and critical thinking spaces outside of, but connected with, formal educational institutions. A Communiversity will support the creation, and acting upon, of knowledge outside of elite institutions. This knowledge is grounded in experiential learning and activism and has an associated urgency about bringing about radical social change. The Communiversity will be a co-operative with many different educational actions taking place autonomously at different levels but with a common aim to provide alterative educational and critical thinking spaces.

Click the following link for an information leaflet praxis_alternative economic forum_23 april