Story Swap is an innovative educational program that uses storytelling, creative writing, and the visual arts to generate understanding between various groups of diverse individuals.
Each participant is asked to tell their partner an important story from their life that, in some way, represents who they are. The partner is then asked to recreate the storyteller's narrative and write the story as though it were their own. In some incarnations of this program, there is a visual art aspect to the project, whereby the participants create a visual expression to accompany the story. By swapping stories, participants walk in one another¹s shoes, therefore building compassion through authentic engagement with one another.
Imagination is at the heart of this project. Imagination allows us to see the potential for change within our daily lives and to envision solutions and possibilities for development, problem solving and unification of diverse socioeconomic and cultural groups. During Story Swap sessions, participants open their minds to difficulties, hardships, joys and successes that are not their own. They share stories of family, landscape, and psychological and emotional differences that challenge their perception of the world and broaden their views and understandings.
