Narrative Change Learning Series Debrief

Members joined YTFG on November 4th for a debrief of our 2025 Narrative Change Learning Series. We reflected on what we've learned over the course of the series – from the in-person sessions held during our Spring and Fall convenings in New Orleans and Oakland, as well as the virtual learning series that was available online. We will welcome input into next steps YTFG should consider for the network to continue its focus on narrative change moving forward.

During 2025, YTFG has offered a learning series for members that has explored narrative change strategy - what it is, how it differs from other communications strategies, and how narrative change can support other investment strategies, such as systems change, policy advocacy, and community organizing. YTFG partnered with the Pop Culture Collaborative, who are expert narrative change practitioners and funders, to engage YTFG members in a learning journey designed to inform investments in narrative change work. In-person sessions were offered at YTFG’s Spring and Fall 2025 convenings, and a four-month virtual tie-in was offered.

The four-part series of asynchronous learning modules covered the following topics:

1. narrative oceans and narrative systems,

2. case study on transforming public perception,

3. narrative infrastructure and how funders can invest in it, and

4. narrative impact evaluation.

Notes from each of the four lessons follow, as well as resources shared throughout the learning series.

LESSON ONE - Narrative Oceans

Summary:

The first lesson covered the importance of transforming toxic narrative waters and seeding healthy narrative oceans through the design and activation of narrative systems, the responsive and creative strategic framework at the heart of the Collaborative’s strategy to support the pop culture narrative change field to achieve narrative immersion at scale. Bridgit shared the six core components of a narrative system (culture change goal, mental models, narrative archetypes, specific stories, inciting experiences, and desired behavioral norms) that work together to activate narrative networks, achieve narrative immersion and accelerate the pace of cultural change.

Key Learnings:

• The goal is to transform narrative oceans, rather than “changing the narrative” on a single issue.

• There are six core, connecting, components of narrative systems design: a culture change goal, mental models, narrative archetypes, specific stories, inciting experiences, and desired behavioral norms.

• Narrative systems work best when all six components synchronize towards a shared culture change goal, which serves as a North Star for a narrative network’s work.

• Narrative networks activate narrative systems to achieve narrative immersion and accelerate the pace of cultural change.

• Successful culture change strategies such as the “Black Is Beautiful” movement activated a narrative systems approach to transform the beliefs, behaviors and identities of millions of people.

Learning & Reflection Questions:

1. What intrigues you about this narrative system framework? What would you like to clarify or explore more deeply?

2. What is an example of a culture change goal that might give life to a narrative system in relation to the issues and communities you are supporting? Name three mental models that currently present barriers to progress towards this goal, and three mental models that could overcome these barriers? Can you think of a pop culture story or set of stories that has helped to advance the culture change goal you identified? How did people’s behaviors change after experiencing the story?

3. From the articulation of a culture change goal to the analysis of the narrative waters and the funding of new stories, a narrative systems approach is inherently collaborative. What initial steps do you need to take to engage your team, organizational leadership, board members, and grantee partners in an exploration of narrative systems design to support your grantmaking strategies?

4. Name a few key ideas that are sticking with you from the two pop culture examples of narrative systems at work: #Copaganda, the toxic narrative system linking Black communities to criminality, and ”Black Is Beautiful,” the liberatory narrative system grounded in #BlackExcellence and #BlackLivesMatter?

5. What needs to evolve in your field ecosystem(s) and infrastructure in order for your grantees to work together as narrative networks to activate narrative systems? How will you lay the ground for this level of radical cooperation?

Resources:

To Change the World, Transform Narrative Oceans

From Stories to Systems

Narrative System Framework

LESSON TWO - A Narrative Systems Case Study

Summary:

In this second lesson, Pop Culture Collaborative shared two powerful case examples of how pop culture strategies and a narrative systems approach work together to make transformative culture change possible: the popularization of bottled water and the #WaterisLife movement. Through an exploration of corporate brand strategy, and narrative and cultural organizing by Indigenous water warriors and climate justice activists, we learned about how narrative systems can create desire for something new, demand for change — and ultimately, transformation in the beliefs and behaviors for millions of people.

Key Learnings:

• Pop culture narrative change strategies such as the popularization of bottled water, as well as Indigenous-led social movement and organizing efforts such as #WaterisLife, have successfully transformed the beliefs and behaviors of millions of people.

• Core components of a narrative system —mental models, narrative archetypes, specific stories, inciting experiences, and desired behavioral norms — were activated to create behavioral change in order to achieve an identified culture change goal.

• Narrative systems design, when combined with pop culture strategies, can rapidly advance and accelerate cultural transformations;

• Given the scale of narrative harm experienced by intersectional communities of color, and the vision and innovation these communities bring as originators and innovators of narrative and culture change strategy, philanthropic strategies need to prioritize support for BIPOC narrative change leadership.

Learning & Reflection Questions:

1. What insights or “aha’s” did you have around the popularization of bottled water case example? Similarly, what insights or “aha’s” did you have around the #WaterIsLife example?

2. How did the various narrative systems components work together to create a new narrative ocean around our consumption of bottled water? For example, what were the mental models and narrative archetypes that were activated and what was their impact?

3. Mainstream corporations (such as in the beverage industry) have billions of dollars and lobbying power to activate narrative strategies for culture change. But as we’ve seen in the #WaterisLife movement, BIPOC-led frontline communities, social movements, and pop culture ecosystems have incredible cultural organizing power.

4. What possibilities arise as you consider ways to grow narrative power for social justice through pop culture narrative grantmaking strategies? How can you deepen your philanthropic field resourcing strategies to work directly with BIPOC creatives, organizers and storytellers?

LESSON THREE - Narrative Infrastructure

Summary:

In the third lesson, Tracy introduced six key narrative infrastructure investment areas that enable funders to robustly support a field to build the narrative power that makes narrative immersion possible: leadership, intelligence, collaboration, innovation, power building, and community. In addition, the module included discussions with pathbreaking field partners as they shared actionable insights and critical lessons from their work to build narrative infrastructure, covering topics such: as narrative research and experimentation, ecosystem building, pipeline programs, industry power and more.

Guests included: Ai-jen Poo of the National Domestic Workers Alliance and co-founder of Caring Across Generations; Imara Jones, Journalist and Founder of TransLash Media; and Maha Chehlaoui, Think Tank for Inclusion and Equity.

Key Learnings:

• Robust and steady investment in narrative infrastructure makes narrative immersion possible. Narrative infrastructure builds the narrative power of individual grantees and of the field.

• There are six core areas of narrative infrastructure grantmaking: Leadership, Intelligence, Collaboration, Innovation, Power Building, and Community.

• Funders should prioritize resources across these six areas in order to grow narrative power for BIPOC organizers, storytellers, creatives and communities.

• Path-breaking field partners shared critical insights and lessons from their successful narrative power building efforts, rooted in narrative infrastructure strategies. Learning and

Reflection Questions:

The six narrative infrastructure areas include: narrative leadership, intelligence, collaboration, innovation, power-building and community.

1. Of the six areas of narrative infrastructure grantmaking areas, which ones has your foundation already in and why? What are some key things you’ve learned from experimentation in these areas?

2. What narrative infrastructure areas do you want to learn more about and why?

3. What were some insights or “aha’s” that emerged for you as you listened to the stories and reflections of Ai-jen Poo, Imara Jones, and Maha Chehlaoui?

4. In Ai-jen’s interview, she uses the metaphor of the “Star Wars” mothership and Jedis to describe deploying exploratory infrastructure to unlock new opportunities for narrative power-building. In what ways can your philanthropic investments and resourcing strategies support grantee partners to activate early narrative research, design, and testing?

5. Reflecting on how Imara was resourced as a pathbreaking narrative leader, how can you invest in the narrative leadership of intersectional BIPOC artists, storytellers, and movement leaders within your own change grantmaking strategies?

6. Reflecting on the origin story and evolution of the Think Tank for Inclusion and Equity shared by Maha Chehlaoui, how can your philanthropic investments seed and grow the organizing power of BIPOC storytellers within narrative and pop culture industries through investments in intelligence, collaborations, and artist-led innovation?

7. What becomes possible when BIPOC communities own their own platforms for storytelling, and control their own narrative infrastructure as centers of power within commercial entertainment, journalism and arts industries?

Resources:

Want Narrative Power? Invest in Narrative Infrastructure

How The National Domestic Workers Alliance Is Transforming Narratives In Pop Culture

Follow the Pipelines: Barriers and Interventions for Diverse Creators in Television

LESSON FOUR - Narrative Impact Evaluation

Summary:

The final lesson covered common questions and misconceptions that arise for funders who are assessing narrative change impact and evaluation. We got a sneak peek into INCITE — the new field and funder impact evaluation framework for the pop culture narrative change field, developed by the Pop Culture Collaborative with USC Norman Lear Center to support both practitioners and funders in tracking, evaluating and synchronizing their narrative impacts over time.

Key Learnings:

Philanthropic colleagues shared their insights and advice about designing and planning for narrative grantmaking impact evaluation over time. For instance, Adey Fisseha, US Senior Program Officer at Unbound Philanthropy talked about beginning with narrative network organizing strategies; and Alvin Starks, Director of Narrative and Culture Change at Open Society Foundations shared his thoughts about resourcing amplification and distribution strategies alongside narrative content creation strategies.

There are common pitfalls, misconceptions, and conflations that might arise as funders track and evaluate narrative change impact. For instance, Dimple Abichandani, former Executive Director of the General Services Foundation, described how many philanthropic organizations lump together learning and evaluation strategies, and invited us to engage with deep learning before evaluating.

INCITE (Inspiring Narrative Change Innovation through Tracking and Evaluation) is a beta learning and evaluation framework, developed by the USC Norman Lear Center’s Media Impact Project with support and in thought partnership with the Pop Culture Collaborative, for field members and funders in the pop culture narrative change field to track, learn from, and evaluate progress towards building a just and pluralist culture.

Learning and Reflection Questions:

1. What challenges have you/your foundation encountered in understanding and tracking the impact of your narrative grantmaking strategies?

2. What reflections did you have while listening to your philanthropic colleagues?

3. Within your grantmaking and evaluation, where are there opportunities to move beyond measuring the impact of “single drops” to assess the transformation of entire narrative oceans over time?

4. Where can you incorporate a learning process alongside grantee partners? In which areas do you feel you need to learn more about before advancing onto impact evaluation?

Resources:

How Do We Know if We Have Transformed Narrative Oceans?

Additional Narrative Change Resources:

Transforming Narrative Oceans through Narrative Systems Design

Video with Bridgit Antoinette Evans, Executive Director of the Pop Culture Collaborative. Covers the core concepts of narrative systems design, similar to Lesson One, plus the case studies covered in Lesson Two.

Funding Narrative Change

Report and framework from the Convergence Partnership that serves as a resource as foundations are navigating their path in funding organizations that are pursuing narrative change and narrative power building. [Principal Authors: Mik Moore, Moore + Associates Rinku Sen, Narrative Initiative]

Convergence Partnership shifted its funding strategies to focus on the intersections of racial justice and health equity three years ago. They have moved nearly $3 million in grants to 12 frontline, people of color led and staffed organizations that are growing civic, economic, and narrative power. A series of blog posts, “Powerful Ripples of Change,” spotlight these organizations, their accomplishments, and the powerful work they have underway. (Note that several YTFG members are part of the Convergence Partnership: Conrad N. Hilton, California Endowment and Sierra Health)

• Narrative Power Unleashed: Communities Shifting and Claiming the Narrative

• Growing Power and Resilience: Intersectional Organizing for Long-Term Wellbeing

• Growing Civic Power for Systemic Change That Lasts Generations

A Strategic Framework to Guide Investments in Narrative Change Best Practices for Media Contexts and Beyond

October 2023 Media Impact Project at the Norman Lear Center, USC Annenberg School

How to Fund Narrative Ecosystems

Mandy Van Deven and Jody Myrum for Nonprofit Quarterly, Feb 6, 2024

Measuring Narrative Change

Understanding Progress and Navigating Complexity ORS Impact

For the final session of the learning series on Community Designed Initiatives, we are thrilled that several of the lead presenters from our previous sessions have agreed to re-join us to take stock of what we've learned throughout the series and go deeper on the role of philanthropy when investing in community designed initiatives. These presenters include:

• Cheri Craft, M.Ed, Founder and CEO, Smart from the Start

• Trey Hartt, Co-founder and Managing Director, The Hive

• Jessica Nowlan, President, Reimagine Freedom

During our final session we will explore the questions that members posed in a survey we conducted last year. Questions we'll address include:

• How can we grow and sustain community designed initiatives over the long term?

• How can community led work be supported by public dollars for sustainability?

• How can community led grantmaking initiatives be connected to systems change work?

• What are the most powerful methods for evaluating community-designed initiatives?

• How can we institutionalize community-led work without losing the special sauce?

Passcode: h4ymKyJ!

About the speaker:

Copy TK

Session 1 of this Learning Series highlighted an innovative example of a community-designed and led model of care that seeks to build service capacity outside of formal public systems. The discussion explored the design processes and development mechanisms that are necessary to capacitate efforts outside of public systems. 

Our guest discussants will be Gina Lyles, Founder and Executive Director, and Trey Hart, Co-Founder and Managing Director, of The Hive Movement in Richmond, VA.

Passcode: QO!7J*em

The Hive Website

The Hive's 2024-26 Strategic Plan

The Hive Program Framework

Freedom Constellations film

About The Hive, in their own words: 

The Hive helps young people and emerging adults successfully transition into adulthood. We are a Black-led, intergenerational, and multi-racial community that believes in a world where all young people feel like they belong and have the resources they need to become independent, healthy, and thriving adults. We are a community-based solution seeking to transition our reliance away from the parts of the legal and child welfare systems that have been proven ineffective, replacing them with holistic systems of care and support strengthened by an ecosystem of partners. We want to ensure young people stay out of the legal system and, ultimately, we want to end practices that further replicate harm, like incarceration, policing, and family separation.

To learn more, view The Hive's 2024-26 Strategic Plan.