TEACHING ETHNOGRAPHY AND WRITING: EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING, COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE, AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

Abstract We discuss our work as members of the interdisciplinary University of Denver Ethnography Lab (DUEL) in creating communities of practice through which students, faculty, and community partners engage in anthropology in action aimed at contributing to social justice and public good efforts. We highlight our work supporting socially engaged ethnographies by students in Writing Program courses. We also explain DUEL's outreach work with community partners, including collaboration with Project Protect Food System Workers (PPFSW), a coalition promoting farmworkers' rights, and with a group of epidemiologists at the Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment (CDPHE) in examining misrepresentation of minoritized groups in public health data. We showcase ways in which this ethnographic research has been presented not only in scholarly publications but also in articles aimed at public audiences, along with films, websites, podcasts, and digital exhibits. DUEL's experience may be relevant to other similar communities of practice.