The TRANSFORM work in Tanzania, led by Monica Shank Lauwo with support from research assistants at Aga Khan University, focuses on children and young adolescents across Monduli, rural Kilimanjaro, Dar es Salaam, and Temeke. Through photovoice, drawing, writing, and dialogue, girls aged 10 to 14 explored issues deeply rooted in their communities, including child marriage, gender discrimination, peer pressure, substance abuse, sexual violence, and female genital mutilation. Their creations were featured in local exhibitions, the Youth United travelling exhibition, and now the Youth Studying Change Lab.

Selected Works

Tanzania - poster
Youth United Exhibition: Initial Photovoice Submissions from 2024
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Girls Authoring Decolonial Futures: Reimagining Literacies, Gender, and Activism from the Global South

Written Work

Tanzanian Children Authoring Gender-Transformation through Participatory Arts-Based PracticesDetails

Author: Monica Shank Lauwo

Abstract: Young people, as authors, artists, and changemakers, are incisive agents of gender-transformation. In this article, I document how Tanzanian 10- to 14-year-old children used drawing, photovoice, and digital bookmaking to identify, analyze, and envision such transformation. Drawing on Tanzanian traditions of uraghibishi and African transformative feminism, I examine how young people employed drawing, photovoice, and bookmaking to analyze and disrupt gendered challenges in their community. I demonstrate how author-artists creatively disrupted single-story narratives of gender, victimhood, and agency, offering intersectional perspectives. Through arts-based speaking back processes, they deepened their analyses of underlying causes and constructed increasingly systemic theories of change. Implications emphasize possibilities for girl/boy collaborations in gender-transformation work, and opportunities for transformative feminism and uraghibishi to invigorate gender-transformation that is systemic, child-led, and intersectional.

Read here

TRANSFORM News Magazine Issue 7: Tanzanian Girls Authoring Alternative Futures

Author: Monica Shank Lauwo

Tanzanian Girls Authoring Alternative Futures is a youth-led project that works with Tanzanian girls aged 10-12 as authors, artists, and change-makers. Using drawing, photovoice, multilingual bookmaking, and participatory research, girls explore challenges in their communities, share their dreams, and imagine alternative futures. Through youth-authored books, artwork, exhibitions, and workshops across rural and urban communities, the project promotes girl-led dialogue, creativity, and action toward more gender-just futures.
 

Featured In

TRANSFORM News Magazine Issue 4: Where has the exhibition been?  
Youth United Will Never Be Defeated travelled across Tanzania, bringing together young artists from Monduli, rural Kilimanjaro, and Dar es Salaam to share their perspectives on gender transformation through photography, art, and dialogue. Through exhibitions and community discussions, participants highlighted local challenges such as school dropouts, child marriage, female genital mutilation, and alcoholism, while promoting youth-led solutions for change. The travelling exhibition amplified young voices and connected local experiences to broader conversations on gender equality and social transformation.
 
TRANSFORM News Magazine Issue 6: The Team Behind The 'Stories of Lives & Literacies Project'  
Meet the educators and research assistants who support the Stories of Lives and Literacies project through literacy, storytelling, visual methods, and participatory research. Their work helps amplify the voices of girls and marginalized learners while promoting inclusive and transformative educational opportunities across Tanzania.
TRANSFORM News Magazine Issue 9:  One Site at a Time - Tanzania 
Youth Studying Change Lab brought together young people across Tanzania to explore how gender and social issues shape their schools, families, and communities. Through drawing, storytelling, dialogue, and participatory visual methods, participants examined challenges such as child marriage, gender discrimination, substance abuse, sexual violence, and female genital mutilation. The project empowered youth to critically reflect on their experiences, share their perspectives, and envision positive change, while fostering community dialogue and youth leadership.