Storymakers Program

About the Program

Humanity today faces intensifying environmental catastrophes: climate change, wildfires, water shortages, biodiversity loss, and more. These are not merely scientific issues, but they cannot be solved without science. And yet, the vocabulary, communication styles, and formats that professional academics typically use are often ineffective and even counterproductive in engaging the public. So how can scientists share their knowledge in a way that moves hearts and minds and builds appetite for change?

The Wrigley Storymakers Program is designed to answer that question. Over the course of the program, you’ll learn the art of environmental storytelling so you can share your research with the public in creative and compelling ways. This program focuses especially on narrative persuasion and how to use it to build internet-friendly content that will engage and influence the widest possible audience.

Hands-on practice will cover audio production/podcasting, writing, immersive storytelling, creative time for producing original content, and feedback sessions. You’ll also participate in a variety of cohort-building activities that will help you create lasting relationships with like-minded colleagues, so you can continue to encourage and help each other in your work long after Storymakers ends.

Fellows should come to the program with a clear idea of what message, story, or ideas they want to communicate to the public, but with an open mind as to how they’ll do it. You will leave the program with a clear understanding of how to craft a compelling narrative through a variety of means and media, plus connections to a network of colleagues and professionals who can help you develop and advance project ideas.

The program location–Wrigley Marine Science Center on Catalina Island–is in a pristine marine reserve where you can retreat from the distractions of normal daily activity and be inspired by the beautiful planet you’re working to aid.

Fellowship Information

2026 program dates: July 20-26, 2026

The Storymakers Fellowship includes all costs associated with program instruction, transportation between Los Angeles and Catalina Island, room and board while on the island, and hosted arrival and departure dinners. You will be responsible for your own travel to and from Los Angeles, plus your arrival and departure hotels, if needed.

Participation is limited to full-time, established researchers studying environment- or sustainability-related topics in the natural sciences, social sciences or humanities.

Before applying to the fellowship, please carefully read our FAQs.

About the Program

2026 program dates: July 20-26, 2026

Storymakers gives you the opportunity to make a difference for the future of our planet by training scientists to communicate their research in ways that engage and influence the public. You’ll work with a small group of leading environment- and sustainability-focused researchers from some of North America’s most prestigious colleges, universities, and scientific organizations.

Instructors commit to a 2-day engagement that includes a workshop and availability to engage with fellows while on the island. Engagements may involve either (1) an afternoon arrival on Catalina Island, with instruction and a late-afternoon departure on the following day, or (2) morning arrival and instruction on Catalina Island that day and possibly the next morning, with departure on the afternoon of the second day.

Instructors who wish to stay with the group for additional days are welcome to do so, with the expectation that they will continue to contribute to the program while on the island.

Accommodations and Compensation

The program location–Wrigley Marine Science Center on Catalina Island–is a pristine marine reserve, providing a retreat-like environment to enjoy your stay. The California mainland and Los Angeles metro area are just 90 minutes away by boat.

All instructors will receive boat transportation to and from the California mainland, as well as meals and private, apartment- or cottage-style accommodations for the duration of their stay with the group.

In addition to transportation and accommodations, all instructors will receive compensation in the form of a competitive fee. Instructors who are based outside the Los Angeles metro area may additionally request reimbursement for reasonable travel costs to and from Los Angeles.

Instructor openings are by invitation only. If you would like to nominate yourself or a colleague to serve as an instructor for the Storymakers program, please email wies@usc.edu, and a member of our staff will respond soon.

Dr. Shahzeen Attari, Indiana University Bloomington. Shahzeen’s research focuses on judgement and decision making to address challenges related to climate change.

Dr. Russ Benedict, Central College. Russ’s research focuses on the ecological roles of bats and tall grass prairie.

Dr. Nyeema Harris, Yale University. Nyeema’s research focuses on focusing on carnivores, protected areas, and human-wildlife coexistence through lens of inclusion and justice.

Dr. Carly Kenkel, University of Southern California. Carly’s research focuses on the ecological and evolutionary interactions of tropical reef-building coral to predict responses of reef ecosystems to global climate change.

Dr. Katherine McComas, Cornell University. Katherine’s research focuses on beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors across a variety of scientific, technical, health, and environmental risks.

Dr. Lindsay Naylor, University of Delaware. Lindsay’s research focuses on food, agriculture, and climate change, with a particular eye to power relations, resistance, and justice.

Dr. Jesse Popp, University of Guelph. Jesse’s research focuses on weaving together diverse knowledges in environmental and ecological science.

Dr. Alexis Racelis, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Alexis’s research focuses on sustainable food systems, agriculture, and community outreach and collaboration.

Dr. Narasimha Rao, Yale University. Narasimha’s research focuses on energy systems, climate injustice, and poverty and wellbeing.

Dr. Stacy-ann Robinson, Emory University. Stacy-ann’s research focuses on the human, social, and policy dimensions of climate change adaptation, with an emphasis on climate justice and adaptation.

Dr. Gabrielle Roesch-McNally, American Farmland Trust. Gabrielle’s research focuses on peer networks, climate change, and
sustainable agriculture.

Dr. Nikki Taylor-Knowles, University of Miami. Nikki’s research focuses on evolution of immunity, wound healing,
and regeneration in corals, especially in response to climate change and other human-induced stressors.

Dr. Ben Halpern, University of California, Santa Barbara. Ben’s research focuses on the interface of marine ecology and conservation planing.

Dr. Doug Bessette, Michigan State. Doug’s research focuses on sustainable energy, energy transitions, and community energy development.

Dr. Heather Leslie, University of Maine. Heather’s research focuses on the ecology, policy, and management of coastal marine ecosystems.

Dr. Holly Bik, University of Georgia. Holly’s research focuses on the interface between biology and computer science to explore broad patterns in marine microbes.

Dr. Jacqueline Padilla-Gamiño, University of Washington. Jacqueline’s research focuses on the ecophysiology and reproductive biology of marine organisms in a changing environment.

Dr. Jessica Hellmann, University of Minnesota. Jessica’s research focuses on the impacts of climate change on natural systems and strategies to reduce those impacts through adaptation and greenhouse gas emission reduction.

Dr. Madhur Anand, University of Guelph. Madhur’s research focuses on global ecological changes in ecosystems of regional and global scales and their implications for human-environment sustainability.

Dr. Nick Haddad, Michigan State. Nick’s research focuses on biodiversity and ecosystem service conservation in the face of global changes such as agriculture, habitat loss, and climate change.

Dr. Noa Kekuewa Lincoln, University of Hawai’i Mānoa. Noa’s research focuses on the nexus of environment, agriculture, and society in the past and the present.

Dr. Rosie ‘Anolani Alegado, University of Hawai’i Mānoa. Rosie’s research focuses on systems biology, microbial oceanography, and historical ecology to understand the influence and impact of individuals embedded in larger systems.

Dr. Joe Árvai, USC. Joe’s research focuses on how people form opinions and make decisions about things that have social and environmental consequences.

Dr. Elena Bennett, McGill University. Elena’s research focuses on the role of people’s relationships to one another and to nature in building a better future.

Dr. William Deverell, USC. Bill’s research focuses on the history of wildfire in the American West and the wildfire management methods used by Indigenous peoples.

Dr. Simon Donner, University of British Columbia. Simon’s research focuses on climate and how it interacts with coral reef ecology.

Dr. Ambika Kamath, University of Colorado Boulder. Ambika’s research focuses on animal behavior, ecology, and evolution.

Dr. Neil Lewis, Jr., Cornell University. Neil’s research is based in the behavioral sciences and focuses on disparities in environmental impacts and how they affect people’s health.

Dr. Vernon Morris, Arizona State University. Vernon’s research focuses on atmospheric sciences and their intersection with climate and air quality issues.

Dr. Suzanne Pierre, California Academies of Science. Suzanne’s research focuses on how climate affects plant-microbe interactions.

Dr. Chelsie Romulo, University of Northern Colorado. Chelsie’s research focuses on the management of non-timber natural resources.

Dr. Merritt Turetsky, University of Colorado Boulder. Merritt’s research focuses on ecosystem ecology, carbon cycling, permafrost science, and fire ecology.