‘Storying Just Futures’ Empowering Youth Through Narrative and Agency

An exciting initiative: ‘Storying Just Futures’ Empowering Youth Through Narrative and Agency

A transformative initiative at Arizona State University is equipping the next generation with the tools to actively design the future. Storying Just Futures (SJF) is a Youth-centred initiative of Humanities for the Environment and UNESCO-MOST BRIDGES Coalition, that empowers young people to imagine, articulate, and co-design the worlds they desire. Developed at the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory, home of the BRIDGES Flagship Hub, the programme provides participants with a unique "anticipatory toolbox", a set of practical skills rooted in the humanities that turn individual insights into tangible pathways for social and environmental action.

The Power of the ‘Anticipatory Toolbox’

At the core of Storying Just Futures is the belief that storytelling is a fundamental human technology. By integrating humanities-driven methods with sustainability science, the initiative helps youth build futures literacy.

Through workshops, lectures, creative storytelling, and futures-thinking methodologies co-developed with UNESCO-MOST BRIDGES, Storying Just Futures offers workshops and creative experiences that move beyond traditional classroom learning. Participants use diverse creative forms, including writing, performance, dance, and drama, to evaluate what justice looks like across different communities and to express those visions as alternative future scenarios.

Connecting Scholarship to Global Impact

Storying Just Futures serves a broad spectrum of emerging leaders, including graduate students, early-career faculty, and environmental justice advocates. The initiative acts as a bridge, connecting humanities and social science expertise with environmental justice communities across ASU.

Key pillars of the programme’s current work include:

• Speculative Storytelling: Utilising tools like science fiction and film to rethink agency, technology, and energy justice.
• Climate Imagination: Developing "habits of mind" that challenge dominant climate narratives and foster hope through informed dialogue.
• Global Advocacy: Preparing a youth-authored White Paper to be presented to representatives of more than 100 nations at UNESCO in Paris.

A Mission for Resilience and Equity

The vision of Storying Just Futures is a world where collective agency leads to more equitable and resilient societies. This mission is currently being realised through a series of high-impact events, such as the Futures Literacy Workshops and the Climate Justice webinars, which centre frontline communities and highlight the importance of just transitions.

As the programme looks towards its Fall 2026 Convergence, the focus remains on equipping "change agents" with the confidence to take ownership of the future. By merging creative narrative with environmental research, Storying Just Futures ensures that youth voices are heard, and are positioned to influence the highest levels of global conversation. Through this initiative, the next generation is proving that by "re-storying" our relationship with the planet, we can begin the work of building a more compassionate and just world today.

"Across all its efforts, Storying Just Futures advances one central goal: to equip young people with the tools, knowledge, and confidence to take agency over the future they desire and deserve."

Further information can be found here:

https://hfe-observatories.org/project/storying-just-futures/

https://globalfutures.asu.edu/humanities-for-the-environment/?project=storying-just-futures