• Undergraduate
  • Graduate

Miami Dade College’s Climate Stories engages Al-Balqa Applied University and Miami Dade College students in a series of conversations around climate change through virtual exchange. Through storytelling, cross-cultural communication, and dialogue, students explore various aspects of climate change such as biographies, causes and effects, grief and anxiety, artificial intelligence, misinformation, climate justice, and storytelling techniques for changemaking through climate action. Climate Stories teams, guided by American and Jordanian faculty facilitators, collaborate and produce podcasts that inform and promote climate action and sustainability through the power of storytelling and host a Climate Stories changemaking podcasts virtual exhibition.

Activities

Participants engage in weekly discussions, create climate biographies and digital journals, and meet weekly via Zoom and Slack for two-to-three hours. Climate Stories involves storytelling and dialogue, project-based learning (PBL), small and large group engagement, and digital storytelling. As teams envision and produce their podcasts, they are exposed to the gold standards for PBL such as identifying a critical problem or question, engaging in critical thinking, sustained inquiry, authenticity, constructive criticism and reflection. Students also understand the three tenets of sustainability and the purpose of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals. Participants are encouraged to think of systems and intersecting UN SDG goals that concern climate change. Program participants research and interview local community partners and experts on climate change and tell a story for their final product. The program’s intentional integration of storytelling techniques, changemaking, and PBL leads to collaboration and cross-cultural communication.

Program Details

Number of Participants

480

U.S. States and Territories Reached
  • Florida
Countries and Territories Reached
  • Jordan
Length of Exchange

Eight weeks (two to three hours total; 1.5 hours synchronous activities/week and 1.5 hours asynchronous activities/week)

Climate Stories is implemented by Miami Dade College and is supported by the J. Christopher Stevens Virtual Exchange Initiative (JCSVEI). JCSVEI is a U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs program administered by the Aspen Institute.