Story Exchange 2026 - Where Voices Meet and Empathy Grows

They arrived as strangers, but parted as keepers of one another's stories. 

Our Grade 9s recently sat across community members from all walks of life and listened to their personal stories at this year’s Story Exchange. 

Modeled after the UNESCO Story Circles, Story Exchange encourages its participants to practice active listening and empathy, as they trade short stories based off of a series of prompts. 

During a time increasingly shaped by division and individualism, this initiative invites people to slow down, and allow themselves to be vulnerable enough to share their experiences and perspectives.

“Empathy is our key word … understanding someone’s story but also understanding their emotions and what people go through,” Facilitator Tsegereda Abebe said. 

“This is what we really want our students to leave with. They’re going to be graduating in three or four years and we want them to have real life experience in front of them, to see how the world works and functions. The hope is for them to understand what other people are really going through,” she explained.  

The event, now in its third year, initially began as a classroom activity for Grade 9 students, Ms Abebe said. 

"We saw the outcome and it was very interesting so we thought we would make it bigger and add more students, staff members and community members," she said. 

For Grade 9 student Hanim M. the event was a reminder of the importance of practicing empathy daily.  

“It was a new experience for most of us,” she said. 

“These people came here to a place they don’t know … if we’re not empathetic and caring towards them, they’re going to feel mistreated, that’s not the kind of environment we want to create.” 

“I learned not to judge someone at face value … it taught me to really get to know people and try to understand [them] in a way that makes them feel comfortable,” Hanim said. 

Ms Abebe explained the selection of participants from community groups like Mekedonia was intentional, designed to give students the opportunity to engage with people across a wide range of ages and life experiences.  

Participants were paired with a community member with whom they shared their story. They then gathered in story circles of 4 to 6 people to reflect on the experience and share their partner's story, in first person. 

“I felt a sense of responsibility … to remember those stories and understand [that] everyone is going through something different and you can never judge a person based on what you think you know about them,” Grade 9 student Amran M. said. 

Following another successful Story Exchange, Ms Abebe said she hopes the event becomes a lasting tradition at ICS. 

“It’s growing and we hope that it's going to get bigger and bigger every year and will continue to impact our students positively,” she said. 

As the event drew to a close, the groups dispersed and participants returned to their daily lives, carrying with them the quiet reminder that sometimes a connection begins with a simple question and a willingness to listen.