Storytelling to Encourage Investment in Young People

Sto­ry­telling to Build Pub­lic Under­stand­ing About What Young Peo­ple Need to Thrive — a webi­nar host­ed by the Annie E. Casey Foun­da­tion — offered guid­ance on how youth advo­cates, non­prof­it staff and com­mu­ni­ty lead­ers can use sto­ry­telling to ele­vate pub­lic under­stand­ing and shape poli­cies and practices.

Effec­tive sto­ry­telling can help make the case for why youth devel­op­ment is a wor­thy invest­ment as youth advo­cates and com­mu­ni­ty mem­bers often have com­pelling, inspi­ra­tional sto­ries to share. How­ev­er, they may face chal­lenges, such as:

• a lack of staff or resources;
• mis­un­der­stand­ing how to use com­mu­ni­ca­tion tools effec­tive­ly; and
• pro­tect­ing the pri­va­cy and dig­ni­ty of young people.

This ses­sion helped par­tic­i­pants devel­op stronger, more effec­tive sto­ry­telling approach­es to build sup­port for a sto­ry­telling cul­ture with­in youth-serv­ing organizations.

Par­tic­i­pants learned how to:

• thought­ful­ly and effec­tive­ly use com­mu­ni­ca­tions resources;
• apply best prac­tices for cre­at­ing per­sua­sive sto­ries; and
• use data to improve efforts.

Pre­sen­ters included:

• Car­ol Abrams, senior com­mu­ni­ca­tions asso­ciate, the Casey Foun­da­tion; and
• Daria Hall, exec­u­tive vice pres­i­dent, Fen­ton.