016: Mind over matter

Meet Natalie Lartey, a narrative researcher and strategist working with social purpose organisations. Her practice is focused on designing and using toolkits to centre racial literacy and colonial memory as essential components of inclusive storytelling and knowledge production. Natalie is the Director and Founder of Wood & Water, a social enterprise that equips people with the tools they need to rethink inclusive storytelling and knowledge production, in ways that better serve diverse racial groups and the wider third sector. Natalie began her career in environmental campaigning following several years of youth activism raising awareness of deaths in police custody and stop and search in Black British communities. She went on to lead campaigns and communications initiatives for environmental and humanitarian aid organisations including Greenpeace, Action Against Hunger, and Concern Worldwide. With over twenty years’ social impact experience, Natalie has developed campaigns, created content, and facilitated critical debate on inclusive storytelling in a range of contexts including Western Europe, East and West Africa, South America, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia. An innovator in her field Natalie has always bought her combined English, Jamaican, and Nigerian heritage to her work. She co-chairs the humanitarian sectors Pledge for Change authentic storytelling panel and advises the International Institute for Environment and Development on ethical knowledge generation and communication. Natalie holds an MRes in Communications from Goldsmiths, University of London, and a BSc in Information and Publishing Studies from Loughborough University. Where can you find Natalie? WoodWater_org on instagram and LinkedIn- Instagram + (7) Wood & Water: Posts | LinkedIn Natalie Lartey on LinkedIn- (7) Natalie Lartey | LinkedIn Who/What does Natalie want to promote: Voices for Change: Stroies from the environmental movement at the British Library- Voices for Change: Stories from the Environmental Movement | British Library