Training Program

Unlock your team’s potential with Story Bridge’s immersive training programs to cater to communicators in various roles.

Story Bridge’s training program is:

• Focused on immediate application, ensuring practical relevance.

• A blend of offline learning experiences and interactive online modules, providing a comprehensive learning approach.

• Continuously updated to incorporate the latest developments in the sector, ensuring you stay ahead of the curve.

• Relational, with each training including an implementation call and course participants maintaining a continuous connection with their instructors and peers around the clock via an online community.

For community-based communications specialists:

Coaching track: Non-Profit Communicator Fast Track (community-based)

Objective: Successful students will develop the skills to craft ethical narratives, conduct trauma-aware interviews, and present compelling information to resonate with current or potential donors.
Duration: 5 days + 6 months of bi-weekly lessons and follow-up

This program provides comprehensive training and hands-on practice for community communicators (relatively) new to the profession.

The fast track consists of two parts: a booster training focused on knowledge acquisition and group learning and a six-month online follow-up program emphasizing guided learning.

This course can be taken in-company, with a group of colleagues. Alternatively, communicators can join a group with other individual learners from different organizations. The next start date for an open group is February 2024.

Coaching Track: Community-Based Non-Profit Communicator Fast Track (Community-Based, Light Version)

Objective: Successful students will develop the skills to craft ethical narratives, conduct trauma-aware interviews, and present compelling information to resonate with current or potential donors.
Duration: 3 days + 6 months of monthly lessons and follow-up

The ‘light’ version of the community-based track is customized to support community voices who may not aspire to become professional communicators.

This includes community-based professionals focused on project execution or individuals with limited physical or mental capacity to work full-time.

Coaching Track: Non-Profit Communicator Advanced Track (Community-Based)

Objective: Successful students will utilize the information they gather to write and produce impactful, campaign-worthy stories. They will also contribute to campaign setup and create new and creative story ideas.
Duration:5 days +6 months of bi-weekly lessons and follow-up

Designed for experienced communicators who have completed the fast track or possess substantial prior knowledge of story finding, the advanced track offers an opportunity to refine skills.

For donor-focussed communications specialists:

Training: Ethical Storytelling & Community Inclusion for Non-Profits

Objective: Equip participants with the knowledge and skills needed to tell authentic, respectful stories while including and collaborating with the communities they serve.
Duration: 1 day

Topics covered:
Decolonizing the nonprofit narrative
We explore nonprofits’ history, ethical challenges, and the evolution of today’s narratives. How does dignity influence development, and what does that mean for the narratives we use? How can we shape stories that benefit communities at various levels? We critically examine our own perspectives and our organization’s story, offering recommendations for improvement.

Including the project community in storytelling
Even though our goal may be to give back the ownership of the narrative to our served communities, this is not the situation at current. What are the first practical steps we can make toward community inclusion? How do we prepare our organizations for a shift toward community-led storytelling? This part of the course combines big-picture strategies with practical steps. It gives you some ready-to-use project suggestions to start with.

Training: Ethical Storytelling in Action

Objective: Train participants in uncovering genuine narratives, emphasizing community inclusion, mastering trauma-sensitive interviewing, and ethically navigating intercultural interactions, all aimed at achieving authentic and respectful storytelling.
Duration: 2 days

Topics covered:
Narrative research & story finding in a project-community context
How do we find the REAL story? Using Story Bridge’s unique system, we craft new, inclusive narratives and find stories that fit them perfectly. Community inclusion (on different levels) is key to success.

Trauma-aware interviewing and intercultural work
How do we stay true to our do-no-harm principles when interviewing people from a culture we don’t know? How do we work effectively and ethically with colleagues from other (sub)cultures?

Training: Involving Gen Y and Z through community-inclusive communication strategies

Objective: Equip participants with the skills to effectively engage Gen Y and Z using community-inclusive communication strategies that emphasize social justice, authenticity, and interactive, real-time engagement.
Duration: 2 days

Topics covered:
Gen Y and  Z: who?
We begin by providing an overview of these generations: understanding who they are, what has shaped them, and how they interact with information. What do we know about these generations and their giving habits?

After the intro, we look deeper into three elements that appeal to Gen Y and Z and learn how to use them effectively:

Authenticity
By giving ownership of the narrative to the people directly involved, Gen Z and millennials perceive the story to be more authentic and trustworthy. Gen Z will be more likely to engage with this message when it reaches them directly from the source, in the same way as communication from their friends enters their timeline. How can community-led strategies give them that experience?

Social Justice
Gen Z is the most ‘woke’ generation there is. They are worried about climate change, social injustice, and the lack of inclusivity in the world. They are weary of ‘colonized’ narratives.

By allowing individuals directly affected by a story to share their experiences and perspectives, Gen Z feels that their voices are being uplifted and respected. This also allows for a narrative that goes beyond asking for donations and creates a broader range of touchpoints.

Interactive & real-time
Gen Z wants to ‘do’ something with your content. Interacting with the protagonists of your campaigns (who are directly connected to your community-based communicator) and/or community-based influencers hired by the organization will help them feel a strong connection with the community and the case.

Implementing a community-led strategy provides enhanced opportunities for real-time and frequent communication with audiences. This approach aligns perfectly with the type of content that thrives on social media platforms.

Coaching Track: Non-Profit Communicator Fast Track (donor-focussed)

Objective: In monthly meetings and online learning sessions, (new) non-profit communicators working internationally dive deeper into ethical storytelling and community inclusion. They also get guidance on how to use these lessons in their daily tasks.
Duration: 8 months