Practice of Liberatory Research Methods
Power of the People: Sourcing Grassroots Wisdom to Reimagine Philanthropy’s Learning and Evaluation Processes
The Movement-Defined Learning Pilot is guided by principles of Liberatory Research, following the work of Dr. Zuri Tau. Liberatory Research is not a methodology or framework; it is a praxis. A praxis resists the binary of theory and practice and demonstrates how the two enrich and enable the other. Liberatory Research is utilized within social science work, specifically in the research and evaluation fields, to enhance our ability to effectively and equitably create knowledge to understand the world around us.
There are 5 Liberatory Research Praxis principles/commitments:
- To uplift the self-identified needs and wisdom of the individuals and communities we are asking to engage in our institutional projects.
- To minimize burden and harm in the research and evaluation field by recognizing and resisting enduring, harmful power relations in research and evaluation practices and outputs.
- To seek out and utilize methodologies, approaches, and theories that can provide more effective ways to conduct our projects with marginalized communities.
- To act to end epistemic oppression in our research work by disrupting the conscious and unconscious acceptance of a Eurocentric viewpoint as superior.
- To acknowledge and interrogate our role in perpetuating harmful research practices and maintaining a posture of openness and willingness for personal transformation through the utilization of the praxis.
