In December 2024, members of AKTIBA and INNOKLAB participated in a community run as part of the Running Minds project. This project, developed by the Kilian Jornet Foundation, aims to bring science closer to the community by connecting nature lovers and runners with their environment.
Led by Naila Jornet, Ion Irurtzun and Ekaitz Zubeltzu, that morning left many learnings, and we are grateful for those. Eskerrik asko Naila, Ion & Ekaitz! We used different facilitation techniques, and one of them can be easily adapted to other events. It can be played in an hour, preferably after or during a community run/walk with a diverse group of 20-40 participants. Let’s call it Earth Stories. It has three steps.
1. First 10 minutes – Individual collection:
- Each participant walks around the natural area independently
- Task: Find ONE item that reminds them of home, their culture, or a meaningful memory
- It could be anything: a leaf, stone, stick, flower (if picking is allowed), found objects/garbage (picking recommended!) or even a pattern in nature
- They can take a moment to reflect and think about their story
2. Next 45 minutes – Story circle:
- Everyone sits in one large circle on the ground
- Each person takes about 1 minute to:
- Mention their name and place they’re from
- Show their item
- Share what it reminds them of and why
3. Last 5 minutes – Common threads:
- Ask for quick reflections: «Did anyone hear a story that reminded them of their own?»
- Participants can just raise their hand and make a brief connection
- Afterwards, participants can make a short debrief in pairs (preferably with someone who didn’t know before) answering the following questions:
- What patterns did you notice in the stories shared?
- How did finding items in nature help you connect with others?
- What did you learn about the relationship between nature and different cultures?
