“How do we unearth the stories that want to be told? What makes us remember a story? How do we balance fact and emotion?”
These were some of the questions faced by those who joined the Storytelling Workshops last week. They shared some of their own stories with others in the group using the “Hero’s Journey” structure and brought in emotions such as suspense, humour and empathy to share those stories. We also practiced our 30 second pitches! It was an interactive workshop and an opportunity for everyone to meet and share what they do.
In Pogradec, we were joined by members of Une Gruaja, PPNEA, AlbNatyra, Pogradec Protected Landscape and Shebenik National Park. In Ohrid, we were joined by MES, CNVP, HIO, Galicica National Park and Resen Municipality. We heard stories about work in the field, the Balkan Lynx, Golem Grad turtles and more nuanced stories about collaboration and working in conservation in the areas. For the last part of the day, everyone was challenged to create a short story. There were some great short films, visual graphics and poetry shared by the group.
Some key take-aways of the days:
- We all have great stories
- Choosing three stories for our repertoire can help be prepared for fundraising, stewarding donors, and other situations
- Storytelling is a skill that can be refined