It's time to change how we use data-driven stories for impact.

Part I: how data-informed stories should help us envision a better world.

For the past eight years, I've partnered with organizations, foundations, and driven individuals striving to build a greener, more equal, and just future. Yet, I've noticed a disconnect between changemakers' vision and how they present their data in stories:

The facts have changed but the stories haven’t.

Using information to drive change demands a fundamental shift in our approach to data storytelling.

I. We can't keep talking about the problem

For too long, we’ve relied on the information-deficit model: the idea that gaps in people's knowledge of an issue were the primary cause for people making uninformed or suboptimal decisions. We thought providing scientifically accurate info on risks and benefits would prompt the right action.

We were wrong.

In an article that he wrote a couple of years ago, Chris Chibwana reminds us that:

You might not think about it every day, with every program you monitor or regression you run, but evidence-informed policymaking is about truth, justice, equality, creativity, and love of others.

I would expand this thinking to all evidence-based communication. Translating complex information into insights is about truth as much as it is about creating a world where all can live in peace.

Most people agree that war is morally wrong. Many have already felt the violent impacts of the climate crisis *some more than others*. And most would agree that letting humans drown in the sea where we vacation is unacceptable.

Yet, why is our work still focusing on fear, polarization, and scarcity narratives?

As Ann Christiano & Annie Neimand urged us *back in 2017* stop raising awareness already.

We need to talk about solutions.
We need to draw a new vision of what's possible.
We must shift our language to one of abundance.

Of course, we need to explain our current understanding of the issues we face. But that should only serve to frame what needs to be done to solve them, not be the end of the story.

We have the numbers. Our visualizations can help paint a picture of what a better world could look like. One that could inspire hope and motivate action.

To be continued…

Gabby

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✨ If you're ready to explore how your organization can change its evidence-informed narratives, let's talk.

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Dataviz of the month

In case you missed, Nadya is doing a 30 days serie of physical charts and they’re some of the most beautiful and innovative pieces I’ve ever seen:

designing.numbers

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