Harnessing the Power of Storytelling in Appalachia

An NEH grant helped the International Storytelling Center (ISC) launch an annual summit convening young social entrepreneurs from Appalachia to support one another’s social initiatives.

With an NEH grant, the International Storytelling Center (ISC) launched the first of three annual summits convening young social entrepreneurs from Appalachia to support one another’s social initiatives. The diverse group of more than 50 participants under 30 is spearheading a variety of community development projects—from creating outdoor recreation initiatives to advocating for farmworkers’ rights, distributing healthy food, and addressing the opioid epidemic. Participants learned how to create compelling messages and pitch their ideas to potential partners and funders while building a local network of changemakers.

“I spent the day surrounded by people who encouraged one another. Over 50 people who have a desire to not only tell the stories of Appalachia, but to do everything they can to make Appalachia better.”

–Kayla Tucker, program participant

The project built upon ISC’s efforts to effect positive social change through storytelling techniques. With grant funds, ISC hired a project coordinator who conducted outreach throughout the region to raise awareness about the project and garner participants. ISC partnered with Appalshop Media Institute to create a professional development program that would empower participants’ social entrepreneurship. Following presentations from ISC and Appalshop, workshop participants were split into groups and assigned scenarios regarding challenges facing Appalachia and obstacles to confronting them. Together, they developed storytelling strategies that aimed to find common ground across social divisions. Participants left the summit with new ideas, resources, techniques, and potential partners to help them pursue their visions for change.

Video courtesy of the International Storytelling Center.

The inaugural summit succeeded in building a community of colleagues that the next two summits will continue to foster. “I left with new friends,” reflected one participant. “We vowed to hold each other accountable, to have conversations not just about what we want for the place but also about what we’re doing to make that happen.” Meanwhile, ISC is developing tools to help K–12 teachers incorporate storytelling into their curricula. Built around a short video of a master storyteller performing, each module includes resources designed to facilitate conversations about the arts, history, culture, and science. Through these digital products and the annual summit, the NEH is helping ISC pass storytelling traditions along to the next generation of leaders and learners. In 2020, the NEH awarded the organization a CARES grant to help it manage the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.