Contents (go to): Introduction ¦ What is GCDE ¦ The project ¦ Reflections ¦ Conclusions ¦ Research: Trunk of truth ¦ Appendix

Critical pedagogy meets Global Citizenship title banner — The Elephant in the Room. A Creative Arts-Based Anti-Racism Educational Resource for Higher Education
(R Gonzales, Adobe, 2024).

Practical Tools for Engaging Students in Anti-Racism Through Creative Expression

Author: Dr Gertrude Cotter
Principal investigator: Dr Gertrude Cotter
The Praxis Project, School of Education, UCC, September 2024

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Introduction

This educational resource is part of an ongoing effort to bring awareness to anti-racism within higher education through creative expression. It is designed to help educators from various disciplines foster critical engagement on racism and social justice, utilizing arts-based methods. This project emerged from the Praxis Project at UCC, funded by Irish Aid, and aligns with GCDE principles to integrate social justice and global citizenship into teaching and learning.

The “Elephant in the Room” project metaphorically represents the pervasive yet often unacknowledged presence of racism in educational spaces. Through a series of workshops, students and staff collaborated to create symbolic art pieces—papier-mâché elephants—designed to spark meaningful dialogue and reflection on racism and its impacts within the university community.

Contributors:

UCC Staff: Dr Amin Sharifi Isaloo, Carol Condon,Eoin Fray, Gertrude Cotter, Sanaa Khabaar, Martha Phelan, Richard Keyes-McDonnell.

UCC Students: Ellen Pereira, María Torres, Siwar Adhibi, Ying Chen.
Artist and facilitator: Tom Campbell.
Document and website layout, design and edit: Dr Rene Gonzales.

This website presents a summary of the resource, ideas and suggestions which align with the Elephant in the Room concept. The resource document contains the full content and references.

Elephants at the workshop — *Elephants in the making at UCC workshop (G Cotter, 2024).*

1. What is Global Citizenship and Development Education (GCDE)?

Global Citizenship and Development Education (GCDE) encourages a critical understanding of global justice, rooted in the concept of praxis—a cycle of reflection and action that empowers participants to address global inequalities.

At its core, GCDE:

Develops key skills: Empowers students to critically analyse issues and communicate effectively.
Promotes values: Advocates for justice, equity, and solidarity as essential global citizenship values.
Encourages action: Moves learners beyond theoretical knowledge to active participation in justice-oriented initiatives.

By exploring historical, social, and political contexts through creative expression, GCDE allows learners to understand complex social issues deeply and challenge systemic structures that uphold inequality.

2. The Elephant in the Room Project

Elephant leadership — *Meet “العدالة” (Al-‘Adalah), representing leadership and dignity. Ada for short! (G Cotter, 2024).*

Project overview

The “Elephant in the Room” project began as a creative and reflective initiative aiming to explore racism within the university setting. By crafting life-sized papier-mâché elephants, participants confronted the “elephant in the room”—the often unspoken yet pervasive presence of racism.

Areas

Anti-Racism training
Initial training for students and staff provided tools for understanding and addressing racism, setting a foundation for the art-based discussions.
Creative reflection
Through the art-making process, participants were encouraged to share their personal experiences and perspectives on racism.
Community engagement
The completed elephants were later placed in various locations on campus, encouraging broader campus discussions on racism and inclusion.

Planning and workshop structure

The project involved careful planning, collaboration, and commitment from students and staff. Workshops were held at Nano Nagle Place, providing a reflective environment where participants could engage openly with the issues at hand. Led by local artist Tom Campbell, participants created art pieces that embodied themes of racism, justice, and solidarity, using symbolism, colour, and design choices to express their personal experiences and insights.

Facilitating dialogue through art

The process of creating art helped participants navigate difficult conversations. By focusing on artistic expression, they could discuss sensitive topics like racism in a less confrontational, more reflective setting. Key questions posed during these sessions included:

How does racism manifest on campus, and how can we confront it?
What systems uphold racial inequalities, and what can we do to dismantle them?
How do our personal experiences with race and privilege shape our perspectives?

Through these discussions, participants engaged with both the emotional and intellectual aspects of anti-racism, making it a holistic learning experience.

3. Reflections on Creative Arts and GCDE

Making elephants — *Tom, Ellen, Sanaa, and Maria hard at work making elephants (G Cotter, 2024).*

Art as a gateway to dialogue

The creative process serves as an open invitation to explore challenging topics. For instance, by visually representing the unspoken “elephant in the room,” participants could approach the abstract concept of racism in tangible, relatable ways. This multidimensional approach encouraged reflection on issues of power, privilege, and justice.

Deconstruction to reconstruction

Creative arts in GCDE allows participants to break down and rebuild complex ideas. As participants created the elephants, they used symbolism and storytelling to explore their own biases and experiences, enabling a transformative learning process. This engagement helped students move from abstract understanding to tangible commitments to change.

Facilitating difficult conversations

Art provides a powerful medium for discussing racism and social justice in a structured, supportive environment. Through creative projects, participants shared experiences and confronted systemic inequalities in ways that are both personal and collective, making these issues more accessible and impactful.

4. Conclusion and Future Directions

*Elephants never forget (G Cotter, 2024).*

Key learnings

Art as a medium for engagement
The creative process provided new ways to discuss racism, allowing participants to explore their identities and biases in a non-confrontational yet personal way.
From understanding to action
The project emphasized moving beyond awareness to real, actionable change, a cornerstone of both anti-racism and GCDE.

Challenges and opportunities

Sustaining engagement
Maintaining momentum beyond the workshops is essential. Follow-up sessions and ongoing dialogue can help reinforce the themes explored.
Institutional integration
Embedding projects like “Elephant in the Room” into curricula could help make anti-racism a permanent aspect of educational spaces.

5. Trunk of Truth: Findings and Insights from The Elephant in the Room Research Project

Abstract

The Elephant in the Room project was developed as a creative and participatory initiative to provide students, staff, and visitors at University College Cork (UCC) with an anonymous platform to share their experiences and reflections on racism within the university community. Over a three-week period, 63 responses were collected through the strategic placement of papier-mâché elephants in key locations on campus. These responses revealed a broad spectrum of experiences, ranging from overt racial harassment and exclusion to subtler but equally harmful forms of microaggressions, linguistic discrimination, and social isolation. Additionally, participants reflected on the effectiveness of UCC’s diversity policies, the lack of meaningful institutional action, and the broader societal denial of racism in Ireland.

The findings were categorised into seven thematic areas, illustrating the different ways racism manifests within the university setting. These include: (1) Defining Racism & Understanding the Concept, where participants articulated their perceptions of racism and its presence in Irish society; (2) Overt Racism & Verbal Harassment, detailing explicit racist incidents, slurs, and discriminatory behaviours; (3) Microaggressions & Implicit Bias, exploring subtle but harmful interactions, including assumptions about language proficiency, nationality, and intelligence; (4) Exclusion & Isolation on Campus, where students shared feelings of alienation and social marginalisation; (5) Institutional Racism & Structural Barriers, highlighting gaps in university policies, recruitment practices, and support systems; (6) Positive Experiences and Acknowledging Change, capturing moments of solidarity and inclusion; and (7) Suggestions for Action & Change, where participants offered concrete recommendations for tackling racism within the university.

While there is a spectrum of experiences, from positive to very painful expressions, this research shows that racial discrimination does exist in higher education, in ways that may surprise many. The study shows how both explicit racism and subtler forms of bias contribute to an unwelcoming environment for some racialised students and staff. While some participants shared positive experiences of support and allyship, the overall findings suggest that the university must take more decisive action to address racial inequities. At the very least it may be worthwhile exploring whether or not this test study can be validated by a deeper university wide study. It may be the case that only those most impacted by racism were attracted to telling their story through the elephants. Nevertheless the findings are noteworthy and deserving of deeper attention.

One of the key objectives of this research was to highlight the necessity of embedding an anti-racist approach, informed by Critical Race Theory (CRT), into Global Citizenship Education (GCE). The responses indicate that GCE, if not explicitly framed within an anti-racist and decolonial lens, risks reinforcing Eurocentric narratives and superficial diversity initiatives rather than fostering deep structural change. By integrating CRT into university policies, curricula, and student engagement strategies, institutions can more effectively challenge systemic inequalities and create learning environments that genuinely reflect principles of equity and justice.

This report outlines specific recommendations for UCC to move beyond performative inclusion and towards sustained, systemic change. These include mandatory anti-racism training, the decolonisation of curricula, the improvement of reporting and support mechanisms, and the meaningful inclusion of racialised individuals in decision-making structures. The Elephant in the Room project serves as both a call to action and a roadmap for fostering an inclusive academic environment where all members of the university community feel valued, respected, and empowered to thrive.

The downloadable full resource (see “Introduction”) presents a thematic analysis of the responses, a discussion of the topic and recommendations for action and reflection.

What people think — *The impression people have (G Cotter, 2024).*

6. Appendix

IDEA code of good practice

The Irish Development Education Association (IDEA) Code of Good Practice outlines principles for integrating development education into learning. The guidelines emphasize fostering critical understanding of global interdependencies and actively challenging inequalities on both local and global scales. Key aspects include:

Contributing to knowledge: Connect local and global perspectives.

Exploring root causes: Examine systemic injustices to foster informed action.

Encouraging critical thinking: Engage learners in open, respectful discussions.

Using quality resources: Develop and maintain high-quality, accurate materials.

For further details on the IDEA Code of Good Practice, visit their website at
<https://www.ideaonline.ie/> (Opens in a new tab or window).

Engage with the Resource

We invite educators to use this resource as a guide for implementing creative arts in anti-racism education. By integrating artistic expression into their curricula, educators can encourage students to explore these critical issues more deeply, moving from understanding to action.