In an era when conversations often happen through screens and social media, the University of Michigan’s Institute for the Humanities is inviting the community to slow down, listen and connect through the power of storytelling.
The Stories We Carry takes place Wednesday, Sept. 30, at the University of Michigan Museum of Art’s Helmut Stern Auditorium. The evening begins with “Writer Colum McCann in Conversation with Michigan Public’s April Baer” from 5:30–6:45 p.m., followed by a Community Story Exchange from 7–8:30 p.m. that encourages participants to hear—and then tell—someone else’s story as an exercise in empathy and human connection.
The Stories We Carry will feature an evening with internationally acclaimed author Colum McCann and journalist April Baer, followed by an interactive Community Story Exchange that encourages participants to hear—and then tell—someone else’s story. Organizers hope the experience leaves participants with a renewed appreciation for the people around them and the stories they carry.
Creating space for human connection
The Institute for the Humanities developed the event as a way to encourage meaningful conversations and deepen understanding across different backgrounds.
“As a Humanities Institute, we are interested in exploring how people understand the world and how our stories, ideas, histories and cultures shape the way we live. The Story Exchange is a great opportunity to slow down, listen to each other, and remember that every person has unique stories and experiences that we may not see on the surface,” said the Assistant Director, Undergraduate Engagement & Marketing for the University of Michigan Institute for the Humanities, Stephanie Harrell.
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The evening begins with a conversation between McCann and Baer about the art of hearing and telling stories before participants have the opportunity to experience those ideas firsthand.
“This event is so cool because people will get to hear Colum McCann and April Baer talk about their experience hearing and telling stories, and then they will be able to put that into action during the Community Story Exchange,” Harrell said.
The hope is that participants leave with more than simply an enjoyable evening.
“I hope people leave with a renewed sense of curiosity about the people around them and maybe with the realization that listening closely to someone else’s story can be just as satisfying as telling your own. It’s so easy to retreat into our own perspectives, and onto social media where the algorithms feed us what we want to hear. We wanted to create space for genuine human connection,” Harrell said..
Why stories matter
The event is built on the belief that stories have a unique ability to foster empathy in ways that facts and debates often cannot.
“Research shows that facts and arguments tend to trigger our defensiveness, but stories give us a way to understand and feel another person’s experience on a human level. We may not share someone’s background or beliefs or circumstances, but we can hopefully recognize something in their story, maybe a feeling, a struggle, a relationship. That kind of listening can challenge assumptions we didn’t even realize we have,” Harrell said.
Stepping into someone else’s shoes
One of the evening’s signature activities is the Community Story Exchange. Participants pair up, share personal stories, and then introduce their partner’s story in the first person.
“It asks us to do something we don’t often do: listen without immediately thinking about how we’re going to respond, what we have to say. When you’re going to retell someone else’s story in the first person, you have to pay close attention to their words and emotions and to what they consider important about their experience,” Harrell said.
The exercise also encourages participants to imagine another person’s perspective.
“There’s something so powerful about temporarily stepping into someone else’s shoes. You’re not pretending to become that person, but you’re imagining their experience. That can create empathy in a very direct and tangible way,” Harrell said.
No storytelling experience required
Organizers recognize that sharing personal experiences can feel intimidating, but they emphasize that the event is designed to be welcoming for everyone.
“There will be several prompts to choose from, and the prompts are pretty universally relatable. You don’t have to be a storyteller by any means, you just have to be willing to talk to one other person for a few minutes. It also helps to remember that everyone in the room is a little nervous!” Harrell said..
Looking beyond the event
Rather than viewing The Stories We Carry as a one-night program, the Institute hopes it becomes the foundation for a broader culture of listening across campus and throughout the Ann Arbor community.
The Institute is launching a pilot Story Exchange program in which approximately 20 undergraduate students will attend the event, participate in the Story Exchange, complete Narrative 4’s Story Exchange Facilitator Training, and then lead additional exchanges during the academic year.
“We’re not thinking of this as a one-time event. We’re giving students a practice they can carry with them and share with others. Ultimately, we’re interested in what it might look like to cultivate a stronger culture of listening on campus and in the broader community,” Harrell said.
Success, they said, will be measured by much more than attendance. “A conversation that changes someone’s perspective, a new relationship that develops, or a student who discovers that storytelling and listening are skills they want to carry into their leadership and professional life…those are all measures of success.”
Narrative 4, the global nonprofit organization co-founded by Colum McCann, will facilitate both the Community Story Exchange and the Story Exchange Facilitator Training. Through this partnership, participating University of Michigan students will learn how to lead future Story Exchanges, helping extend the practice of empathy and deep listening across campus and throughout the broader Ann Arbor community.
“I love how this project brings together two very different kinds of experiences: a conversation with an acclaimed writer and then a simple, participatory exercise that anyone can take part in. You don’t have to be a writer to have a story worth hearing, and you don’t have to know someone well to find a point of connection with them,” Harrell said.
The Stories We Carry takes place Wednesday, Sept. 30, beginning with “Writer Colum McCann in Conversation with Michigan Public’s April Baer” from 5:30–6:45 p.m. in the Helmut Stern Auditorium at the University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA), 525 S. State St., Ann Arbor.
The conversation is free and open to the public with no registration required. Advance registration is requested for the Community Story Exchange, which follows from 7–8:30 p.m., giving participants the opportunity to put the evening’s ideas into practice through a guided storytelling experience.
Donna Marie Iadipaolo is a writer, journalist, and State of Michigan certified teacher, since 1990. She has written for national publications like The Village Voice, Ear Magazine of New Music, Insurance & Technology, and TheStreet.
She is now writing locally for many publications, including Current Magazine, Ann Arbor Family, and the Ann Arbor Independent. Her undergraduate degree is from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where she graduated with an honors bachelor’s degree and three teacher certificate majors: mathematics, social sciences, English. She also earned three graduate degrees in Master of Science, Master of Arts, and Education Specialist Degree.
