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Introduction 

The culture of the progressive sector—as with all sectors—is rooted in stories. They are stories that convey values, mental models, assumptions and identities, all of which ultimately guide our behaviors.

Unsurprisingly, the most powerful stories that define the culture of our sector are not the stories about the issues we work on, but rather the stories we tell ourselves about who we are (and aren’t) and how we should act in the world to make change (and shouldn’t).                    

Narrative is now a big buzzword in the field of social change. That is more a testament to people wanting to understand narrative, however, than it is a testament to people actually understanding it.

Evaluating our overall approach to narrative, as well as the specific narrative changes we have determined to achieve, comes down to a foundational question:

What is our own narrative about the role that narrative strategy plays in social change—our own narrative about what it is, what it takes to do it well and what’s at stake in our success? We tell ourselves a story about storytelling, a narrative about changing narratives. What purpose is it serving? Is it the right narrative? Is it the one we need?

I believe we have the wrong narrative about narrative.

A slightly different version of this piece can be found on the author’s blog. All images were provided by the author.

Introduction

Since the 2016 election, interest in the concept of “narrative” has spiked in the nonprofit and philanthropic worlds. There exists a growing consensus among people committed to social justice that traditional change efforts like organizing, advocacy, and litigation cannot be fully effective or lasting unless they are integrated with a narrative change strategy. Definitions of what narrative means vary greatly, and the art and craft of changing it can seem mysterious. But experience and research point to clear, replicable approaches for reshaping public narratives in support of social justice.

What is Narrative and Why does it Matter?

At The Opportunity Agenda, we define narrative as “a Big Story, rooted in shared values and common themes, that influences how audiences process information and make decisions.”  Narratives are conveyed in the political and policy discourse, but also in news media, popular culture, social media, and at dinner tables across communities.

As recent experience shows, many audiences are invulnerable to facts that do not fit within a narrative that they can understand and embrace.

Text originally published Oct. 06, 2024

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Gara Afonso, Domenico Giannone, Gabriele La Spada, and John C. Williams

This article was originally published, in slightly different form, on the author’s substack onHousing. It is shared here with permission. All images were provided by the author.

The Federal Reserve’s most expansive lending authority- supposedly activated only under “unusual and exigent circumstances”- continues to be an essential interest of mine. Writing about it is what I became known for, back in 2020. Why is it so important? Because it is an extremely flexible and powerful power, there has been little oversight over how it's interpreted and what its limits are and we still don’t really know its secret history. The 1967-1973 minutes I got through FOIA are revelatory and fascinating. We still have to address a large gap between 1974, and sometime in the 2000s (if not later). Nevertheless, the minutes still have so much to teach us. Perhaps the most shocking thing I have come across in the minutes is that the Federal Reserve very nearly got rid of its own emergency powers.

On this episode of Dollars & Sense, Greg and Elinor discuss the government’s crackdown on hidden fees, dynamic pricing and why reducing gender disparities can lead to better pay and fewer worker shortages.

Greg Jericho is Chief Economist at the Australia Institute and the Centre for Future Work and popular columnist of Grogonomics with Guardian Australia. Each week on Dollars & Sense, Greg dives into the latest economic figures to explain what they can tell us about what’s happening in the economy, how it will impact you and where things are headed.

Host: Greg Jericho, Chief Economist, the Australia Institute and Centre for Future Work // @GrogsGamut

Host: Elinor Johnston-Leek, Senior Content Producer, the Australia Institute // @ElinorJ_L

Show notes:

‘Here’s a way to fix Australia’s skills shortage – and raise wages at the same time’ by Greg Jericho, Guardian Australia (October 2024)

On this episode of Follow the Money, Paul Bongiorno, columnist for The Saturday Paper and The New Daily, joins Ebony Bennett to discuss culture wars in Australia, two upcoming elections, and the reaction to Anthony Albanese’s new beachside retreat.

This discussion was recorded live on Tuesday 15 October 2024 and things may have changed since recording.

Guest: Paul Bongiorno, columnist, The Saturday Paper and The New Daily // @PaulBongiorno

Host: Ebony Bennett, Deputy Director, the Australia Institute // @ebony_bennett

Show notes:

‘Dutton takes a high-risk stance on the Middle East’ by Paul Bongiorno, The Saturday Paper (October 2024)

Theme music: Pulse and Thrum; additional music by Blue Dot Sessions

This interview is also available on podcast platforms and Rumble.

There is a careful art to good journalism. It involves not only seeing and writing what happens but also understanding the reason why, and the precedent that came before it. Empathy, combined with a cunning understanding of one’s environment and ability to talk to people are crucial instruments for a reporter hoping to get the whole story — not just the headline a paper may seek. Joining host Chris Hedges is Lara Marlowe, journalist and author, to talk about how her former husband and colleague Robert Fisk encapsulated all of that in his years as a journalist and writer and how his work, specifically his book "The Great War for Civilization,” serves as one of the West’s great tools in understanding the modern Middle East.

Integrity experts, academics and parliamentarians gather in Canberra today for the Australia Institute’s Transparency Summit: Secrecy is not security, held in collaboration with the Human Rights Law Centre, Whistleblower Justice Fund, Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom and Transparency International Australia.

The Transparency Summit connects those have been stonewalled – and explain why open government and public access to information is more important than ever in a world of AI-generated deepfakes, election denial and democratic backsliding.

Activist organization Trans Kids Deserve Better have topped their previous sit-in by disrupting an anti-trans activist conference with… six thousand crickets!

Charlie has a varied background supporting communities at the sharp end of inequalities. With work across the mental health and wellbeing sector in Berkshire and Birmingham, Charlie has directly supported citizens in their daily, often complex, challenges. While also working on projects to uplift their vital voices of lived experience to instigate change in the systems […]

The post Charlie McNeill appeared first on Equality Trust.

Are we about to see history repeat?

‘Do you ever stop and ask, ‘Is it all going to happen again?’ —Siegfried Sassoon

We live in an age that seems eerily familiar. A time of dictators, populists, organised lying, European wars, grabs for territory, ideological extremism and even antisemitism, a time when things are falling apart and the centre is struggling to hold. It has all happened before, in the 1920s and ’30s. History is sending us a warning, and unless we heed it, history will have its revenge as we repeat the disaster of the 1940s.

The world needs to learn the lessons of these decades, and fast. Dennis Glover retells the story of the interwar years in a series of lessons drawn from unfolding events and the unheeded omens of those who spoke out but were ignored.

An urgent, surprising and altogether persuasive read, Repeat: A Warning from History will open your eyes.

– – – – – – – –

Dennis Glover was educated at Monash and Cambridge universities and has made a career as one of Australia’s leading speechwriters. His first novel, The Last Man in Europe, was published around the world in multiple editions and was nominated for several literary prizes, including the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction. His second novel, Factory 19, was published in 2020, and his third, Thaw, in 2023. His book-length essay An Economy Is Not A Society was published in 2015.

Introduction

This document paints a picture of the ecosystem of actors who are working to build narrative power in movements, as well as of the movements themselves. The picture shows different groupings – or kinds of actors – within this ecosystem and the relationships and interconnections between them.

It seeks to include actors within movements who we believe are at the heart of narratives work, and not only those practitioners who are helping to develop and disseminate narratives.

It takes a cross-movement perspective: reflecting the breadth of our process as well as the widespread appetite for collaboration across movements around narratives. It also seeks to take a global perspective, looking outside any particular country. Most importantly, it highlights what practitioners and members of movements are themselves saying about the contexts in which they are operating and what they need.

This is a perspective that we believe is too often missing from analysis of this ecosystem. This picture is, ultimately, based around a vision of what a healthy, just and successful ecosystem for narratives work could be.

This is one where the key actors have strong relationships; are able to align their efforts when they need to; are resourced for the long run; and where they are able to share and benefit from the learning that they are collectively generating.

Introduction

I’m an organiser and a trainer who is also the parent of two Neurodivergent children and on my own journey of discovery about my own brain. I want to share a few ideas and general supports to encourage people to set up training spaces that are supportive of neurodivergent brains.

These measures don’t take a lot to put in place but they can make a big difference to a person who has probably spent a lot of their life masking to fit into neurotypical worlds. It is by no means a full list of what works for all people and I am by no means an expert in all the best supports a neurodivergent person may need, but there are lots of resources out there if you want to find out more.

The best place is to start by asking someone what would support them in the situation.

Setting up training spaces that are affirming of neurodivergent people, allows everyone to show up as themselves, rather than expecting them to fit into a space that treats neurotypical as the ‘norm’. Many people have spent a lifetime masking and working out how to fit in. This can go on until they hit a breaking point (burnout) or start to discover why things have always been a struggle.

So be patient.

Introduction

Watching tragedy unfold in Ukraine, I have been thinking about the powerful, rapid, and often unexpected impact that major, shocking events can have on narratives that underpin our understanding of the world.

While narrative and culture change work tends to take years, events have the power to bring about rapid change, often in unexpected ways. 

In 2011 the Fukushima nuclear disaster changed the conversation about nuclear power. It still resonates more than a decade later. The murder of George Floyd sparked a global protest and placed policing and structural racism at the top of the public agenda.

Introduction

This guide is for anyone who wants to create social change, and who wants to learn how storytelling can help.

The guide is divided into four color-coded sections.

• The STRATEGY section is about how to use storytelling to best effect.
• The STORYTELLING section offers ideas on how to tell a good story.
• The METHODS section covers some techniques in storytelling.
• And the STRUCTURE section looks at how to incorporate storytelling into your everyday work.

Contents

INTRODUCTION

• About this guide 1
• Introduction 2

STRATEGY

• Why tell stories for social change? 4
• How do we develop a storytelling strategy? 6
• How is storytelling used for social change? 8
• Where can we tell stories? 9
• How do we do research to support our storytelling? 10
• How do we reach new audiences? 12
• How can we piggyback on pop culture? 14
• How do we balance short-and long-term storytelling? 16
• How do we make stories actionable? 18
• How do we combine the personal and the political? 20

STORYTELLING

New Australia Institute analysis shows that Woodside’s North West Shelf (NWS) Extension proposal represents a major threat to WA’s domestic gas market.

The proposal is seeking approval from WA Environment and Energy Minister Reece Whitby.

Today The Australia Institute is joined by two former WA premiers, Carmen Lawrence and Peter Dowding, and oil and gas industry expert Tim Forcey to highlight the threat posed by Woodside’s proposed export expansion.

Woodside has not identified sufficient new gas supply to meet the export capacity of the LNG facility. The resulting shortfall could see further WA domestic gas diverted to export markets.

A new report revealing the unaffordability of housing for Australia’s essential workers underscores the urgent need for bold government action to end the crisis, Everybody’s Home said.

Released on Anti-Poverty Week (13-19 October), Anglicare’s special edition of the Rental Affordability Snapshot shows less than one percent of rentals are affordable for full-time workers in hospitality, construction and early childhood. 

Even workers with the highest award wages could only afford 3.7 percent of rentals. 

A statement from Everybody’s Home: “From essential workers, to people on the lowest incomes, millions of people are struggling to afford their biggest cost-of-living expense: rent. Housing stress and homelessness are far too high in our wealthy country.

Gays Against Groomers requests an honorary flag from a Colorado Government program and falsely claims it was personally granted by Governor Jared Polis.