Asking for a Friend...Narrative Matters

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Asking for a Friend (the Field)... is NCG's Advice Column for the field of Philanthropy. Submissions are open to the philanthropic community and the NCG team will respond. Want to join the conversation? Submit your question below! While we can't get to every question, the NCG team will work to respond to questions as we're able.
 

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Conundrum 

I’m struggling with the shifts my organization has had to take in response to the current administration. While we typically invest with narrative or storytelling at the forefront, we’ve pivoted those funds to focus on rapid response. There’s no doubt that rapid response funds are needed right now to respond to the current administration, but I’m concerned the momentum we’ve gained around the importance of storytelling will get lost. How are organizations able to prioritize both so we don’t lose any momentum?  - Narrative Matters 

Columnist 

This week's column was written by Qurratulain “Q” Sajid. Thank you for sharing your wisdom with the field!

Advice

Dear Narrative Matters, 

I hear you. In philanthropy, we often use narrative change, storytelling, and strategic communications interchangeably. It is vital to understand how this political moment has been driven by major investments in organizing not just people but also organizing ideas.  
 
Narrative change is still an emerging field, and making the case for investing in it across generations requires visionary, not reactive, philanthropic practice. It’s more than investing in typical strategic communications efforts that are short-term, like a billboard campaign. There are many historical lessons on organizing for narrative changes that show moving beyond tactical campaigns builds power for the long haul. We need to move long-term proactive investments in narrative change to get us all free. 

Narratives are how we organize ideas, not stories. Rather, stories are stars that can illuminate which ideas are most salient in our culture. Narratives are the underlying beliefs, values, or ideas that are advanced through collections of related stories. Because narratives convey a particular interpretation of the world and the way it works, they can be harmful or beneficial to advancing the world we envision and have real material consequences. 

  
I gained a deeper and clearer understanding of the distinctions between narratives, narrative power, and narrative infrastructure through Narrative Nexus organized by ReFrame last year. NCG is now bringing our own learning series in partnership with ReFrame with Mobilizing for Narrative Change: A Philanthropic Learning Series which will ground participants in a shared understanding of narrative power building developed by practitioners in the field. Inviting you to join us this year so we can grapple with the question you raised. 

Hoping we can co-create a container for collaboration, clarity, and action together,

Qurratulain “Q” Sajid