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Full Circle: Stories Across Borders and Boundaries

November 21, 2024

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Stories transcend boundaries, whether they be geographical, cultural or socioeconomic. They have the power to connect and inspire us, while nurturing a shared sense of humanity. The Full Circle Project, initiated by high school students Mimi Ruedaflores and Kate Lim, exemplifies how storytelling can remove barriers and pave the way to global citizenship.

Inspired by the concept of Ubuntu, a philosophy centered on interconnectedness, Full Circle was launched by Kate and Mimi in their final year at California’s Polytechnic School as their capstone project for the school’s Global Scholars Program. Having learned foreign languages and participated in international exchange programs, they recognized the value of embracing diversity and engaging with different cultural perspectives. Through their project, they aimed to leverage technology and their linguistic skills to facilitate connections between students across continents.

How It Worked: Storytelling Without Borders

Using Narrative 4’s Story Exchange methodology with a unique twist, Kate and Mimi brought together 12 students from South African, Japan and France to share their stories. A typical Story Exchange involves participants telling a personal story to a partner, who then retells it as if it’s their own – all in a single session. However, to overcome language barriers, Kate and Mimi sent the participants a set of prompts in advance, encouraging them to write their stories in their native languages. Once they received these stories, Kate and Mimi compiled them into a magazine, including English, French and Japanese translations for each one. Participants received a copy of the magazine before eventually meeting over a virtual Story Exchange on Zoom, allowing them to read their partner’s story in their language prior to the exchange.

“Despite some technical learning curves, the Story Exchange was a success. It was truly wonderful to see even the shy participants opening up to their partners and witness each person eagerly listening to the other, even without fully understanding their language,” recall Kate and Mimi.

By removing language barriers and connecting students across schools and countries, Kate and Mimi sought to create a global forum for connection and conversation, decentralizing the dominance of English in fostering global citizenship. They hope the project will continue in some form and are committed to continuing their efforts in fostering Ubuntu.

Keeping the Circle Going

Mimi, who is now in her first year at Brown University, is studying cognitive science, international affairs and policy with a focus on language studies. She intends to expand her connections with students worldwide through Brown’s International Affairs and Policy (IAPA) Institute. Kate, also a first-year student, plans to major in business and social policy analysis, with a minor in medicine. She aims to continue participating in cultural exchanges and study abroad programs to deepen her engagement with diverse communities. Inspired by their experiences creating the Full Circle Project, both Mimi and Kate are sustaining the ripple effect of Narrative 4’s impact, demonstrating how one educator’s vision for compassion and connection can positively shape young leaders ready to make a difference.

Looking to the future, they hope that projects like Full Circle will continue to unite students from around the world, promoting global citizenship and a shared sense of humanity. With improved Internet access, advancing technology, and multilingual resources, they are confident that such projects can be scaled to serve even larger and more diverse groups of people.