Back in October, I had the pleasure of attending Confluence, a gathering of narrative thinkers, doers and dreamers, held by IRIS, Puentes and the Global Narrative Hive, in the bustling city of Bogotá.
Apart from the excitement of getting to meet, in person, lots of folk I have connected with and learnt from online over the past few years, it was a chance to step back from the day-to-day task list and think afresh about the growing field of narrative change.
The gathering consisted of opportunities to connect across cause and across region, exploring together what is means to build narrative power today and into the future.
I left the gathering with new ideas, a new level of excitement, and a whole lot of admiration for those working to bring about durable and bold transformation in their various corners of the world.
Here are some of the insights and ideas I’ve been sitting with upon my return to the UK:
Narrative as activism — During a discussion on what we understand narrative change to be, I was struck by a comment made by Trevor Smith, Director of Narrative Change at Liberation Ventures. Trevor said that he sees narrative change as something which is carried out not just by civil society actors, but instead is something that everyone can participate in. Trevor posed the question of what it would take for his barber and his local bus driver to see themselves as narrative change actors? Do we need a return to the old values of our social movements, before the ‘industry’ professionalised, where everyone was welcomed and able to participate? Where instead of signing a petition or buying fairtrade products, we encourage those seeking a just future to actively build power for alternative narratives in their own lives and relationships? (Do check out this incredible tool recently released by Liberation Ventures supporting the emergence of a narrative to support the reparations movement in the States, which is perhaps the most comprehensive narrative work I’ve ever seen!)
Narrative as care — I had the pleasure of meeting Nishant Shah for the first time at Confluence. Nishant is one of those magical people who manages to weave their words together in such a way as to totally ignite your heart. During one particular conversation, I was particularly moved by Nishant’s description of ‘narrative as care’. Existing and living in oppressive systems is exhausting. Living at a time of such urgency, rage and fear, is exhausting. Showing up everyday with love and hope in your heart is exhausting. But when we foreground care, for ourselves and each other, we are not only interweaving justice into our everyday existence, but are laying the groundwork for new narratives — new communual understandings of the world — to take root. His call to funders to create more spaces for grief, for tending wounds and administering to broken spirits, really resonated with me. Do check out Nishant’s amazing work on digital narratives.
Narrative as changing the weather — During a session on impact measurement and evaluation, I found myself in a fish bowl with Cara Mertes, Director of IRIS. Cara shared a metaphor which has stuck with me. If we imagine humanity on a plane, the work of social and environmental activists has often focused on making the plane more habitable for more people. Maybe we’ve fought to change the seats so they’re comfier, or maybe we’ve petitioned for better quality, more nourishing food to be served to passengers. However, despite these tweaks to the status quo, the fundamentals haven’t changed — we’re still on a plane! The work of narrative change is to shift the weather that keeps the plane in the air, leading to a safe landing and new beginnings.
Narrative as everyday decisions— Often narrative change is understood as referring to the communication strategies of civil society actors, which isn’t wrong, but also doesn’t encompass everything narrative change could be. Mandy Van Deven, a consultant who connects the worlds of philanthropy and narrative, was on a panel during the last event of the conference and said something that I’ve tried to carry with me since returning from Colombia. She spoke of how we can each make narrative decisions everyday in how we choose to show up in the world, in what we each prioritise and in the respect and care we show one another. Narrative change doesn’t need to always be ‘big’; it also, importantly, needs to be small.
Narrative as hope — A defining theme of the conference was hope. It’s the fuel that keeps us each doing the work we’re doing, even when our hearts are breaking, and it’s the magic sauce we need to help to spread across the nations. Mónica Roa, Director of Puentes and narrative extraordinaire, asked the question: “Do we look at the world and see outrage, or do we look at the world and see the seeds of a better future?”. To me, narrative change work is a real-world manifestation of a deep hope that things can be better.
During the gathering, I had the opportunity to take part in an (all female!) panel discussion alongside Suparna Choudhury, Anat Shenker-Osorio, Mehret Mandefro (who writes this awesome newsletter) and Marcia Mercedes Acosta Posada, expertly moderated by Julia Roig. We came together to explore various ways human beings are motivated to care about, and take action for, social and environemntal challenges, and how this learning can inform our narrative strategies. I spoke on behalf of the Common Cause Foundation about the importance of engaging intrinsic values (values such as equality, social justice, unity with nature etc) through our communications and wider work, and how sometimes we unintentionally undermine our own work by further reinforcing values and narratives which underpin the status quo. To delve deeper into this topic, please see Values 101, Common Cause’s flagship course (run by yours truly), which will be running at different times throughout 2024.
Super grateful to the organisers of Confluence for giving me the opportunity to attend such a wonderful event. I very much look forward to continuing the collaboration into 2024 and beyond.
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Other reflections from the conference you might like to look at:
Harnessing the wholeness of our efforts — by the wonderful Kwem from the Global Narrative Hive
PIRC goes to a conference in Bogota: and learns a lot! — by Sara Cowan from PIRC (obvs!)
Building narrative power — by Thomas Coombes from hope-based communications