Abstract

In the last decade, storytelling has been popularised as a method for societal sustainability transformations. With this growing popularity, there has also been a rapid increase in those identifying as storytellers. Perhaps because storytelling for sustainability has an innocent ring to it, it has not yet been studied from a power perspective. However, as it is fast-spreading and has explicit change purposes, it is important to clarify assumptions about knowledge, power and change. This article offers a first step towards understanding and evaluating the wide variety of applications behind the label of storytelling for sustainability. We perform a frame analysis of how storytellers describe their storytelling for sustainability. Our findings demonstrate that the label of storytelling for sustainability encompasses fundamentally different ideas about whose knowledge counts. The article raises critical questions that can help assess the legitimacy and appropriateness of different applications of storytelling for sustainability.

Keywords

storytelling; sustainability; power; reification; stories

Published in

Journal of Environmental Planning and Management
2023,
Publisher: ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD

SLU Authors

• Joosse, Sofie

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Westin, Martin

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Möckel, Fanny

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

Sustainable Development Goals

Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development


UKÄ Subject classification

Social Sciences Interdisciplinary


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09640568.2023.2258276

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/126862