Constructing Sacred Containers for Participatory Action Research: An Embodied Mindfulness Arts-Based Practice.

College campuses often fail survivors of gender-based violence, prompting efforts to create empowering, participatory spaces. This article describes Sacred Containers, a mindfulness and arts-based embodied practice that uses dyadic and collective discussion to build co-constructed communities where participants become visionaries and experts on safety, power, and well-being. Based on student and faculty reflections across four cohorts, the practice aims to transform settings and address institutional betrayal. The article outlines the rationale, process, impact, and recommendations for implementing this approach.

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Abstract

College campuses are sites of institutional betrayal and interpersonal harm for too many survivors of gender-based violence. In pursuit of change aligned with empowerment frameworks and feminist epistemologies, many of us create spaces for impacted students to engage in participatory action research and learning. This article describes a mindfulness, arts-based embodied practice for transforming settings and positioning participants as visionaries and experts on safety, power, and well-being. Through intentional dyadic and collective discussion, the Sacred Containers form the foundation for a coconstructed community. This article describes the rationale, process, impact, and recommendations via student and faculty reflections across four cohorts.