Storytelling for the planet

The practice of telling stories is as old as humanity itself. We tell stories to entertain, to soothe, to agitate, to teach, to preach, to remember, and to make sense of things that baffle our minds. Lately, a new theme has emerged – storytelling for sustainability, stories that aim to contribute to sustainability. Such storytelling appear in a wide array of practices, such as activism, science communication, marketing and arts. While some kinds of storytelling might help us envision a sustainable future, other kinds might instead deceive us. What kinds of stories are told? Who is telling the story, and how does that affect how the story is told - who gets to be the hero, who or what play the parts of villains and distressed damsels?

The Mistra Environmental Communication project “Storytelling for the planet – what is it, who does it, where and why?” set out to develop tools for critically assessing storytelling practices. The great diversity of storytelling practices are mapped in order to establish a better understanding of how, why and by whom the stories are told. The project specifically focuses on the ethics of storytelling for sustainability, shedding light on the dangers and possibilities of this emerging practice.

“We crafted this project because we were puzzled and frustrated with some of the ‘business as usual’ storytelling practices. These stories seemed to imply that we merely had to be ´smarter’ as consumers to achieve sustainability. At the same time we also wanted to critically scrutinize the more radical storytelling practices that we felt affiliated with.” says Martin Westin, researcher at SLU. 

The project is a collaboration between SLU, the WET Centre and Greenpeace.

Text: Emily Montgomerie