Storytelling and the Climate Crisis
One of the characteristics that distinguishes humans as a species is our capacity to tell stories. In fact, we live by the stories that define our values and frame our understanding of our relationships to one another and the natural world. Authentic cultural stories are those that are told by authentic storytellers and artists who interpret the values and aspirations of our communities. In our modern age the storytelling function has been largely co-opted by entrenched power brokers – witness the “official story” behind the march into Iraq or the “official story” behind many of the post 9/11 directives in the name of national security.
It may seem to be absurdly simple, but a key to provoking positive change and re-directing our future is to change the stories we live by. Think about Al Gore and his story. He uttered an “inconvenient truth.” In fact, he uttered it time and time again to audience after audience and, in the process, opened the door of possibility to a different future. Masterful storytelling, but the job is nowhere near done. Last week’s stalemate at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali is indicative of how far we have to go. But, then Al Gore showed up and told an inspiring story that conveyed an alternative narrative. It’s not yet the official story or the dominant story but it’s a story worth listening to.
This entry was posted on Thursday, December 20th, 2007 at 12:22 pm and is filed under Sustainability, Environmental Change, Positive Change. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.