How can we tell a new story?

New Narratives of Place

New Narratives of Place
Context

Barriers in the System

Right now, the prevailing narrative of our economic system is one of consumption, growth, individualism and extraction at all costs. We are told – via the media, advertisers, politicians and the various institutions we depend upon – that all growth is good; that profits matter more than people; and that the environment is primarily a resource to be used and discarded. Human and environmental health and wellbeing are not centred in this narrative, and it is failing us on a catastrophic scale.

This narrative didn't emerge from nowhere. It has been shaped over decades and influenced by structures and institutions not representative of the diversity and complexity of our current society. This has oriented the narrative towards stories that are singular and over-simplified, rather than pluralistic and mutually supportive in what they suggest.

Our response

What We're Doing

We are working to redefine these stories. Our focus here is to find new approaches to the social, economic and political narratives of our time – and to present new stories that empower our communities, make change possible, and nourish the soil that makes regeneration possible. 

Starting in Melbourne, we are focused on the new narratives that can emerge from our Earthshots: stories that centre wellbeing of our waterways, connection to our streets and abundance in our food system. We are knitting these stories together to build new possibilities for the holistic regeneration of our city. Looking beyond Melbourne, we are engaging with broader discussions about the narratives defining our economic system, exploring how we can tell a story of the economy serving us, instead of the other way around.

What we're asking

WHAT IS

To what extent do prevailing narratives serve the wellbeing of people and place?

WHAT COULD BE

What could it look like for social, political and economic narratives to orient towards a regenerative future in and beyond Greater Melbourne?

HOW TO

How might we use new forms of narrative and narrative-building as tools for change?

learning portfolio

Overall Portfolio

Our work in New Narratives of Place is made up of a Learning Portfolio that includes real storytelling, media and narrative-building activities which have a combined doing and learning emphasis. The Learning Portfolio responds to two interconnected themes, each underpinned by supporting how-to learning questions.

Projects

Narrative-building Practices

Storytelling as a practice is as old as time; participating in shaping narratives continues to hold enormous potential to enable people and communities to build agency and collective identity. This theme focuses on how we can use the creation of stories as a change-making tool at local and city-wide scales. Our learning questions within this theme include:

  • How might we apply narrative-building as an approach to increase community agency and connection in urban transformation?
  • How might storytelling surface new understandings of place and our relationship to it?

Narratives & Change

The stories we tell, and are told, shape our beliefs and values, and in turn our relationships with each other and our environments. This theme focuses on developing and disseminating new stories of regeneration within our Earthshots, across Melbourne and in relation to our economic system. Our learning questions within this theme include:

  • What new narratives can describe and orient us towards a future where people and planet thrive in balance?
  • How might we use narrative and storytelling as foundations for systemic change?

Projects

Large crowd at the City Portrait for Greater Melbourne launch in a heritage brick venue with purple lighting