Learning by doing: Bringing feminist values to life in program learning practices for quality violence prevention

This article discusses a feminist approach to learning and its practical applications for organizations working to prevent violence against women and children, which remain largely undocumented in existing literature. Feminist principles emphasize that the way we learn is as important as the knowledge we create, centering values such as equality, care and justice that align with the broader focus of violence prevention work. Through real-world experiences and perspectives from three feminist activist organizations in Uganda, this article highlights the complexities of translating feminist principles into tangible action. The three organizations came together to discuss and analyze achievements and setbacks they experienced in applying feminist values in their program learning activities. Their experiences demonstrate that, when done with intention and quality, feminist learning strengthens the inclusivity, safety and quality of violence against women and violence against children prevention programming. Yet upholding feminist learning principles is not without challenges. These include (1) a lack of appropriate and flexible donor support compounded by donor-grantee power hierarchies, (2) gaps in addressing intersecting inequalities and including a gender-power analysis in learning activities, and (3) lack of intentional documentation of practice-based learning to help challenge existing hierarchies around what counts as evidence. Applying feminist principles supports dynamic learning that prioritizes holistic assessment and responsive programming. The article concludes with a set of practical recommendations for both donors and practitioners to create a supportive organizational environment and adequate resources for feminist learning. • The way we learn from our programs is as important as the knowledge we create. • Feminist learning strengthens inclusivity, safety, and quality in violence prevention. • Experiences from feminist organizations illustrate the potential and challenges of feminist learning. • Flexible and long-term donor support is critical for feminist learning. • Intentional planning is required to integrate feminist learning principles.