International Storytelling Center: Who We Are

The International Storytelling Center is an educational and cultural institution dedicated to building a better world through the power of storytelling. To accomplish that vision, the Center serves as a learning laboratory where the power of storytelling is examined and studied. Also, through a program of learning, the Center teaches people around the world to use storytelling to produce positive change in their lives, their workplaces, and their communities.

The Center's opportunities for learning are designed for personal enrichment and professional development. In addition, they help build institutional capacity and leadership by teaching their learners, as mentors and change agents, to lead positive change in their own institutions and communities through the power of storytelling.

The home for the Center's work is the International Storytelling Campus–a beacon for storytelling worldwide and a resource for storytelling. The campus in Jonesborough–the only facility anywhere in the world devoted exclusively to the power of storytelling and its creative applications–include a 200-year-old country inn, and education building, and a three-acre park. The Center provides visitors with experiences in storytelling-including performances through the popular Storytelling Live!, a twenty-two week Teller-in-Residence program. The Center also produces and co-owns the National Storytelling Festival, the premier storytelling event in the world.