Over the past decade, storytelling has gained traction as a method for supporting societal transformations toward sustainability. Storytelling holds great promise, but it is not neutral. Instead, any form of storytelling for sustainability rests on assumptions—about who gets to define what is sustainable (e.g. scientists, planners or everyday people), who is entitled to tell the stories (e.g. communication officers, communities or individuals), and who is expected to listen and change (often specific groups that are seen as having a high environmental impact). These often implicit assumptions about sustainability, knowledge, power, and change shape the stories being told and the outcomes they are understood to support.

Given storytelling‘s widespread uptake by companies, governments and NGO’s and its explicit aims for change, it is surprising that it is rarely critically examined through the lens of power. This tool aims to help with just that.

The Story Lens is a research-based tool and offers a series of questions to think through the assumptions in storytelling for sustainability. Read more about the research study that underpins The Story Lens here.

Team

Martin Westin, Sofie Joosse, Vera Brandes, SLU