#179 Rinku Sen, Narrative Initiative

The human brain, as Rinku Sen explains, loves and is even addicted to stories. A highly respected author, organizer, and political strategist driven to achieve racial and gender justice, Rinku has amplified the stories of many people whose voices are rarely heard, or communities fully represented in mainstream media. Now, as executive director of Narrative Initiative, Rinku is transforming the ways in which nonprofits communicate their stories to policymakers and the press. The work goes deeper than positioning organizations to be heard. Rinku and her team are a singular resource for nonprofits that are motivated to expand beyond strategic communications-the practice of setting short term policy goals supported by an organizing campaign and the communications strategy needed to advance it. They are experts in developing narratives that appeal not to supporters but to those whose minds must evolve to make big social change possible. It is a bold, ambitious and long overdue agenda. As America's history with slavery and suffrage reveals, it takes generations to change mind-sets and make the most egregious policies and practices morally indefensible. These are seeds of change we can all cultivate.