In this short video, folklorist Norma Elia Cantú explains why she is a folklorist. “I believe in the human spirit, and I believe the work we do nurtures that spirit.” Norma explains why it’s so important to proclaim the name folklorist in
Case Study
In this Ted Talk, Kiran Singh Sirah, The President of the International Storytelling Center, talks about how to tell stories that change the world. Notice how he makes the case for storytelling and folklore. Back to Toolkit
Maida Owens is a folklorist who serves as director of the Louisiana Folklife Program, an important partner in the Bayou Culture Collaborative, along with the Louisiana Folklore Society, university centers and other non-profits. She researched efforts to address Louisiana’s coastal land loss
Kiran Singh Sirah is a folklorist, poet and president of the International Storytelling Center. He heads the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee—the oldest festival of its kind in the world and a driving force behind the renaissance in storytelling. Kiran talks
In 2020, folklorist Tim Tangherlini and his collaborators published an article on how narrative frameworks could help people distinguish between conspiracy theories and real conspiracies. Within months, his research was being written about and talked about by the BBC, Ars Technica, Axios,
Here is an example of creating additional funding for underserved audiences by the Committee on Responsive Philanthropy. Their campaign, Philanthropy’s Promise, has persuaded over 100 funders to designate at least half of their grant dollars for underserved communities. http://www.ncrp.org/philanthropys-promise This effort developed
Amber Ridington is an independent folklorist with a specialty in digital humanities based in Vancouver, BC. In this case study, she describes her work with First Nations communities and the many strategies she has developed to advocate for ethical approaches to fieldwork,
Tom Mould describes the creation of a collaborative research project that brought community members, program leaders, and students together to study the personal experience narratives and legends about poverty and welfare in the U.S.
Academic journals rely on financial commitments from universities in order to be viable since they do not generate enough revenue to support themselves. In 2019, the folklore faculty at George Mason University (GMU) applied to serve as the editorial team for the
Robert Baron, who teaches in the Masters Program in Cultural Sustainability at Goucher College describes how folklorists banded together over the years to save the New York Folk Arts Coordinator position, the American Folklife Center, and the NEA Heritage Awards. NYC Folk