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The art of storytelling : against the instrumentalisation of stories as information sources in climate communication

Graminius, Carin LU and Dodds, Philip LU orcid (2023) In Nordic Journal of Library and Information Studies 4(1). p.51-65
Abstract
Storytelling is an important tool of public engagement for researchers, not least for climate scholars. However, a problem arises when stories are treated instrumentally as means of delivering specific messages and as information sources. In particular, controlled experiments measuring the impact of stories on readers may misrepresent how stories work in practice. In this article, we shift perspective and re-emphasise the complexity of storytelling by analyzing the role of stories in three “climate fiction” novels: Sands of Sarasvati by Risto Isomäki, Green Earth by Kim Stanley Robinson and Tentacle by Rita Indiana. We highlight four underrepresented perspectives on storytelling: (1) stories may be used as time-resistant sources of... (More)
Storytelling is an important tool of public engagement for researchers, not least for climate scholars. However, a problem arises when stories are treated instrumentally as means of delivering specific messages and as information sources. In particular, controlled experiments measuring the impact of stories on readers may misrepresent how stories work in practice. In this article, we shift perspective and re-emphasise the complexity of storytelling by analyzing the role of stories in three “climate fiction” novels: Sands of Sarasvati by Risto Isomäki, Green Earth by Kim Stanley Robinson and Tentacle by Rita Indiana. We highlight four underrepresented perspectives on storytelling: (1) stories may be used as time-resistant sources of scientific evidence; (2) stories may provide moral guidance; (3) stories have the ability to make connections, organizing events and agencies; and (4) stories afford storytellers agency to act on climate change. We thus conclude that efforts to evaluate the impact of stories require an understanding of how stories function in specific works of art. (Less)
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author
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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Nordic Journal of Library and Information Studies
volume
4
issue
1
pages
15 pages
ISSN
2597-0593
DOI
10.7146/njlis.v4i1.136351
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
96fc4803-0d79-4d0f-aa64-79ae0d5b9402
alternative location
https://tidsskrift.dk/njlis/article/view/136351/184909
date added to LUP
2023-10-20 09:35:12
date last changed
2023-10-23 09:05:02
@article{96fc4803-0d79-4d0f-aa64-79ae0d5b9402,
  abstract     = {{Storytelling is an important tool of public engagement for researchers, not least for climate scholars. However, a problem arises when stories are treated instrumentally as means of delivering specific messages and as information sources. In particular, controlled experiments measuring the impact of stories on readers may misrepresent how stories work in practice. In this article, we shift perspective and re-emphasise the complexity of storytelling by analyzing the role of stories in three “climate fiction” novels: Sands of Sarasvati by Risto Isomäki, Green Earth by Kim Stanley Robinson and Tentacle by Rita Indiana. We highlight four underrepresented perspectives on storytelling: (1) stories may be used as time-resistant sources of scientific evidence; (2) stories may provide moral guidance; (3) stories have the ability to make connections, organizing events and agencies; and (4) stories afford storytellers agency to act on climate change. We thus conclude that efforts to evaluate the impact of stories require an understanding of how stories function in specific works of art.}},
  author       = {{Graminius, Carin and Dodds, Philip}},
  issn         = {{2597-0593}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{51--65}},
  series       = {{Nordic Journal of Library and Information Studies}},
  title        = {{The art of storytelling : against the instrumentalisation of stories as information sources in climate communication}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.7146/njlis.v4i1.136351}},
  doi          = {{10.7146/njlis.v4i1.136351}},
  volume       = {{4}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}