Finding the Story

Stories are a powerful way to communicate. They can grab our attention and help connect feelings to concepts. Narrative is not only proven to increase engagement, comprehension, and retention, but has a unique ability to transform how audiences think about a topic, making people more receptive to new ideas and perspectives. But how do we find stories to support our communication goals? 

This 3-hour virtual workshop is an introduction to what makes a compelling story, and techniques that can help you find stories from your research or scientific focus area. You’ll  have opportunities to practice and receive feedback as you begin to develop your own story during the workshop in small groups. Throughout the workshop, you will expand your understanding of the role of story in science communication and build the skills you’ll need to identify and incorporate story into your communication efforts. 

Our virtual workshops aren’t your typical webinar. We keep things moving and engagement high through a combination of facilitated group discussion; brief, relevant and interesting content presentation; and meaningful activities in breakout rooms with partners. By registering for this workshop, you are agreeing to use a webcam during discussion and breakout room portions of the workshop. Please also commit to actively participating for the benefit of yourself and the group. Due to the progression of materials presented and the paired exercises, we cannot admit participants who are more than 15 minutes late. More information can be found in the FAQ page on our website.

Who could benefit from this workshop?

This workshop is open to anyone who would like to illustrate and illuminate key science messages using story.

Technology

The workshop will be held on the video conferencing platform Zoom. If you are unfamiliar with the platform, this one-minute video explains how to join a meeting. You will need a webcam, microphone, and stable internet connection. Recommended upload/download speed is 5Mbps/5Mbps. Test your internet speed here by clicking “run speed test." This workshop will also incorporate the browser-based whiteboard program called MURAL.