Every social justice article and blog starts with a dramatic description of the polycrisis that we face. We know these are times of significant geopolitical shifts and technological changes (for good and for bad). And most of us are eager to find ways out of these crises and land in a fairer, more just way of coexistence, in harmony with nature.
This is why narratives are so important. Narratives matter because they help people make sense of the world, share values, and decide what feels true or important. Narratives can shape societies by influencing identity, culture, politics, and the way we understand conflict and change. They have the power to build social cohesion and common purpose.
To get a deeper understanding about narratives, what works and what doesn’t in this field, and what funders should support, at the end of 2025, TAI published The Stories We Tell (co-written by James Logan, Eszter Filippinyi, and Darlington Marange). The scoping offers insights on how funders and civil society organizations can develop and amplify narratives that build legitimacy, bridge divisions, and resist authoritarian efforts to undermine civic space.
While we found no magic solutions, a number of recommendations emerged for funders, and there was a unanimous call for supporting narratives work that is about building and bridging diverse communities, building towards a more positive future:
Invest in Long-Term Narrative Ecosystems: Fund narrative infrastructure, not just campaigns. Prioritize collaboration, learning, and adaptation over time.
Support Community-Based, Value-Driven Work: Help CSOs engage deeply with local communities and amplify narratives rooted in shared human values.
Enable Risk Management and Protection: Funders must help partners manage risks associated with narrative work in repressive environments.
Encourage Experimentation and Learning: Provide space for creative approaches and reflection to evolve narrative practices across different geographies and cultural and social contexts
With an intention to move from insights to action, TAI organized a series of three online gatherings (between May and July 2026), together with the Democracy Narrative Alliance (a global multistakeholder initiative, coordinated by People Powered, that explores constructive ways of talking about democracy and increases public support and engagement).
The first call, for narrative practitioners only, focused on identifying shared priorities for narrative work on civil society and democracy. The synthesis of these discussions served as the basis for the following conversations.
The second call was an opportunity to compare notes among funders and practitioners, discuss challenges and opportunities, and come to a collective sensemaking.
The final call, for funders only, offered a safe space to discuss insights and priorities emerging from the previous conversations. To inspire funders, Chiara K. Cattaneo, co-lead at Elemental, presented a few concrete initiatives designed to strengthen “narrative infrastructure”: the often-invisible systems that enable stories to spread, resonate, and endure.
A partnership between Elemental and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) to facilitate knowledge exchange among funders and identify opportunities for co-investment led to the creation of a Collaborative Fund with a focus on resourcing long-term infrastructure for cultural mindset shifts. The fund is currently US focused, but with ongoing conversations on potential evolutions. While the Fund is issue-agnostic, it is not values-agnostic. The core purpose of the Fund is to enable strategic coordination among funders to provide reliable funding to the ecosystem.
The Pause Fund, a collaboration between Elemental, Oxfam Novib, and Digital Narratives Studio, seeks to explore: what does care look like when it is not a response to harm? And how might we resource proactive care practices that strengthen our movements and prefigure the world we long for? The fund provides unrestricted funds to global narrative workers allowing them to pause in a self-determined way, and to come together as a cohort to reflect on the experience.
If you want to learn more about these Funds or about the Funder Learning and Action Cohort that Elemental has been helping to design and facilitate, please reach out to Elemental.
Funders debated the challenges of building narratives that are truly inclusive and that make visible neglected communities, that capture the imagination of people, and that are long-term and flexible. While there were more questions than solutions, these are the three main actionable ideas that emerged from the series of conversations:
Some funders bravely support narrative power and infrastructure in specific countries. We can learn from these experiences, and if you are a funder and you are interested, please let us know, and we will make sure you are part of the community.
Support diverse and inclusive convening spaces where different actors can co-imagine democratic futures together.
Developing metrics and indicators to measure impact and make the case to potential new funders, without contributing to rigid, counterproductive systems.
Our main takeaway is that narrative change is not about crafting better messages. It is about investing in relationships, trust, culture, and imagination. It requires patience, coordination, and a willingness to experiment.
The field does not need more isolated innovation—it needs deeper alignment and sustained commitment. The opportunity now is to build on what already exists, connect the dots, and move collectively from insight to action.
Encouragingly, funders are not starting from scratch. A range of ongoing initiatives offer opportunities to learn, collaborate, and scale. We encourage you to engage in shared learning spaces like TAI’s 3D Dialogues, the Democracy Narrative Alliance, or Elemental’s Funder Learning and Action Cohort.
Resources shared by Elemental:
Related readings:
The Stories We Tell, by James Logan, Eszter Filippinyi, Darlington Marange (TAI)
How to Fund Narrative Ecosystems, by Mandy Van Deven (Elemental) and Jody Myrum (Our Collective Practice)
How to Talk about Democracy. WHAT WE KNOW (AND DON’T KNOW), by the Democracy Narratives Alliance
Mapping the Global Democracy Narrative Landscape, by Metropolitan Group (MG) and research partners (2022-2024)
From Protecting the Status Quo to a Vision for Change Framing Democracy in a Time of Authoritarianism, by Andrew Volmert and Clara Blustein Lindholm (FrameWorks Institute)
REVIVING OUR DEMOCRACY A narrative for the new political system we need, by Democracy Revival Center, FrameWorks Institute, The Bloc
The Myths of Philanthropy (series), curated and edited by Elemental
Calls for stories and fiction on democracy and civic space: