Launchpad: Storytelling
This is a blog post by Lil Patuck as part of the Frontier Tech Launchpad blog series, sharing key content from our 5th session. Learn about the full Launchpad journey here.
Every pilot project is full of stories. There are twists and turns, conflicts and opportunities, success and failure. And as a learning-through-doing programme, each story contains valuable insights for FCDO and beyond to learn from.
Looking across the diverse portfolio of pilots it’s easy to spot incredible characters woven through each journey. From the Pioneers with brave ideas and the partners who bring the know-how to take them into the real world, to the humans with most at stake and the coaches guiding each team along the way.
None of these characters know what will happen but are willing to take a bet to try it out. The outcome of a pilot is a complete mystery, and that’s what makes them so extraordinary to learn about.
In our 5th Launchpad session pilots came together to explore why storytelling is such a powerful tool for impact, reflect on the importance of learning out loud in pilot projects and look at examples of pilots doing so in resonant and accessible ways.
Attendees shared some of the things that really landed for them during the session, from the science behind storytelling and the impact on behaviour change, to the difference between narrative and story and the impact of humanising a pilot project.
“A pilot’s shared learning is something that deserves genuine thought, planning, design and execution as a core activity rather than an add-on after the journey has finished. There’s a lot of information out there. Finding resonant ways to engage and build an audience who can learn from your work is crucial.”
Four reasons to use stories to bring evidence and insight to life
We first explored why storytelling is such a powerful tool for impact. It supports fundraising and community building, and helps to engage decision-makers. Whether telling stories externally (on social media, a website or through news outlets) or internally (on internal FCDO platforms or via an email newsletter) stories cut through the noise and ensure that rigorous insights are resonant and engaging.
Storytelling activates parts of our brain that facts and statistics don’t. There are three chemicals released when we hear stories, which combined lead us to engage, retain information and be moved to take action. You can read more about these chemical reactions here.
Stories contextualise data. We don’t remember numbers, but rather, we remember the story that’s told about the numbers. It’s harder for people to consume hard data and statistics than a story which presents their meaning. Look at how this pilot in Nepal used community-designed murals to communicate flood risk data in rural areas.
Stories move our perspective from probable to possible. It’s a tool we can use with which to help envision things that do not yet exist, and pilot projects are all working to develop something novel. Explore this Pioneer story to read about their idea before they even began their journey.
Finally, Stories help us listen, and understand. Listening to users, communities and stakeholders is a vital part of designing a pilot project grounded in real, human needs. Our bees in South Africa pilot recently went out to intentionally listen to the stories of beekeepers working with them.
Five quick tips for anyone sharing learnings, regardless of the medium being used
Knowing why to use stories is one thing, and how is another. By the end of the session attendees talked of telling the stories of business models, setting up video interviews and even creating animations. We asked questions like:
How might we turn a technical concept into a story that can approach non technical people with?
Can storytelling be used to create discussion tools during a multi-stakeholder event we are planning?
How can we create a series of stories to shape or shift a narrative intentionally?
In our session we explored a few starter tips to get started thinking about how teams might capture and tell stories in their own pilot projects.
Be more TV scientist: define your story layer.
The story layer does not replace the research or insight, but helps others engage with it. Think of a scientist you have seen on TV of YouTube. Two UK examples are David Attenborough and Brian Cox: qualified scientists who work with teams to break their complex subjects down into concepts we can understand, often with the use of stories. By presenting a story layer (eg. a family of animals migrating) you can engage your audience before adding in the complexities (why the animals have to move and the impact of climate change).
💡 Watch the ‘Smarter Water’ film to discover the eWater pilot’s story layer before digging into the evidence underpinning their project.
Write like you’re in conversation with someone you respect.
However complex a project might be, you will likely make the effort to explain it in layman's terms to a family member or an old friend. Try writing a blog like you’re writing a letter to someone you know and respect, but who doesn’t know anything about your work. This is a simple way to ensure you’re communicating in an accessible way. This launch blog about developing deep sea cameras is a great example of accessible communication.
Turn your pivots and failures into twists and turns.
Reframe these moments of uncertainty. The pivots and failures are some of the strongest storytelling devices you have at your disposal. Our brains look for change in stories and naturally register it in all our interactions, so lean into the twists and turns which are naturally occuring. Think about how the ups and downs from your story can help trigger those chemicals in the brain and create tension in your story. Read this blog: an honest moment as a pilot exits and shares its final learnings.
Paint a picture of the future that’s possible.
As mentioned above, stories help envision things that do not yet exist. You can use this information and tell the story of this: imagine the world in 10 years time and describe what success would look like. How has the world changed? How have people’s lives been affected? What has been learned? What if? Check out AR/VR for CRSV pilot page, where they used video and illustration to bring their project to life from the beginning of their journey.
Wherever possible. Focus on human stories.
Our brains love characters more than anything, so the humans involved in your project are the ultimate vehicle with which to bring a story to life. Many of our pilots have found ways to bring the voices of those with most to gain (or lose) to the center of their story, whether through words, film, photographs or illustration. See the stories of female farmers in Zambia whose lives have been improved thanks to the PAYG bike scheme piloted by an FT pilot.
Pilots do not exist to succeed or fail: they exist to learn
Learning out loud is a key aspect of the pilot journey. Each pilot’s insights inform a much bigger picture, as we pull them together to spot the bigger trends across our portfolio, Because we believe that lessons we learn across all pilots are incredibly useful to our colleagues in FCDO, tech entrepreneurs, and the wider development community. The added benefit of learning out loud, is that it helps to maintain an agile mindset, refine learnings and garner support from others.
All pilots will produce a report at the end of their journeys, but it’s the insights and stories shared along the way that we’re encouraging: when there’s momentum, and a great story to tell. The Frontier Tech Hub are here to help amplify pilot stories, insights and updates through our website, newsletter and LinkedIn and X profiles.
Our next session will follow on to explore individual pilot audiences and the narratives they often hear. We’re looking forward to continuing the journey then.
If you’d like to dig in further…
📚 Read more about the full journey so far on the Launchpad page here.
⛴️ If you’d like to hear more about this session, please reach out to lil@hellobrink.co.
