Entries by Sabine Schoenbach
Opportunity Agenda: Messaging on the Supreme Court & The Judiciary
This year, it looks like many of us will need to communicate about the role of the Supreme Court. How can we do that in ways that build to a more constructive long-term understanding of the what the role of the court SHOULD be….the Opportunity Agenda has a helpful guide. Access the Messaging Memo
Advancing a Well-Being Narrative
Developed by the Metropolitan Group and RAND, this narrative guide offers some early thinking on a Wellbeing Narrative in the U.S. – a narrative shift from “economic growth at all costs” to “well-being for all people.” The report reviews and examines the implications for well-being approaches gaining traction globally, and offers initial insights and recommendations […]
Think Big Conversation: Shifting the Story of “Hard Work”
On February 27th, the Narrative Learning Community met to explore the fraught concept of hard work in the American narrative and to discuss promising paths forward. We shared lessons learned from our deep research across the South and Southern Midwest through the Topos/EARN-led Southern Mindshift Project and heard from partner advocates and organizers about their on-the-ground experiences. Check out […]
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Washington state no longer has worst tax code in U.S.
This press release does it all: Promotes the win, uses the effective “upside down” metaphor to explain a complex topic, connects revenue to wellbeing and community prosperity, and leans into Washington’s image of itself to say – “we can do even better.” Check out the press release
ITEP: Who Pays?
Kudos to Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy for the 7th edition of their comprehensive analysis of tax systems in all 50 states. Connecting “upside down taxes” to wealth inequality is an excellent way to explain a complex topic like regressive taxation. Access the Report and State-by-State Data
We Make the Future Action: Amplifying Organizing
A messaging resource specifically designed for organizers, this new guide offers best practices together with a practical case study example (ISAIAH’s campaign to build power in St. Paul, Minnesota). View the Guide
Harmony Labs: How to Reach New Climate Audiences
This excellent interactive guide from Harmony Labs (in partnership with Earth Alliance) focuses on making climate culturally relevant. But the creative techniques they use to think about reaching audiences are useful to any issue area. Entering the next frontier of climate communications requires knowing which audiences haven’t been reached, where they gather, what drives them, […]
Think Big Report: Belonging In and To America
How do we get to a future America for all of us and for everyone, a nation in which belonging is co-created and power is authentically shared? Over the last year, Topos Partnership has worked in collaboration with the Bridge Project to conduct original research – including in-depth ethnographic interviews – building on the diagnosis of our fractured American […]
Think Big Community Coffee Chat: Join us on 12/14!
An informal conversation on BELONGING in and to America Thursday, December 14th, 2023 I 12-1pm EST I 9-10am PST Register Today At our convening last month we shared insights from our new research on the role of narrative incrafting a story of belonging in and to America—a future story untethered from white supremacy. We hope by […]
Reparations Narrative Lab: Research and Tools
The Reparations Narrative Lab – launched by Liberation Ventures – focuses on narrative and culture change to build public support for reparations. Take a look at the extensive research and tools created during the first iteration of the Narrative Lab — including narrative briefs, webinars, and framing worksheets. Access the research and tools
October Learning Community Meeting: Reimagining American Identity
New Research Shines Light on the Story of Who We Are and Can Be October 31st, 2023 I 12-1pm EDT I 9-10am PDT Imagine a future in which American identity is untethered from white supremacy — neither white supremacist nor centered around resisting white supremacy. Without forgetting the lessons of our past, this American identity […]
FrameWorks: The Terrain of Spatial Justice
Racism is built into places. It shapes who can live where, how resources are distributed, who gets a say over what happens in places, and more. Places in the United States reflect, perpetuate, and amplify the racism that structures US society. Creating a racially just society requires creating a spatially just society—a society that advances […]
NC Budget and Tax Center: Everyone contributes or this boat won’t float
Well done, NC Budget and Tax Center! This video is aspirational and explains the role corporations SHOULD play to help working people and communities.
Think Big: Abundance in Narrative
We often define abundance as a contrast. Abundance is NOT scarcity, NOT austerity, NOT competition for resources. So, then, what IS abundance? What are some of the core elements behind the term and the idea in narrative? What do these elements look like in practice? What are some of the inherent tensions? What do we […]
SAY IT SO THEY’LL HEAR IT: Updated Best Practices Guide
Topos Partnership has released its newly updated summary of communications principles and best practices! SAY IT SO THEY’LL HEAR IT illustrates narrative best practices with explanations and examples, all with the goal of helping progressive advocates make the most of their communications opportunities. Download the guide
August Learning Community Meeting on ABUNDANCE Framing
From Scarcity to Abundance: A Think Big Narrative Learning Community Conversation Wednesday, August 16th I 4-5 pm EST, 1-2pm PST Save the date for our next Learning Community meeting on August 16th at 4pm EST! Together with Amanda Cooper, Senior Partner at Lightbox Collaborative, Laura Hughes, Director of Narrative Strategies at PolicyLink, and Elaine […]
How to Save a Country: We Can Defeat Zero-Sum Politics (with Heather McGhee)
This episode of Roosevelt Institute’s excellent podcast How to Save a Country features Heather McGhee, Author of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together. On the podcast, Heather explores the impacts of the zero-sum racial hierarchy (the narrative that asserts that progress for people of color comes at […]
FrameWorks: Framing Community Safety
A new report from The FrameWorks Institute (courtesy of The Annie E Casey Foundation and the Prevention Institute) has recommendations on Framing Community Safety (including the public health approach to community safety and social determinants of health and safety). A helpful resource if you’re engaging in public conversation on issues of safety. Check it out Here.