How One Bridgebuilder Used Digital Storytelling to Unite Iowa Communities – Yurika.R

Not only did the class teach these students how to craft narratives that explore identity, cross-cultural connections, and communication, it also taught them to approach difference with curiosity and empathy. “The students were meaning-making together — sharing vulnerable parts of themselves and being receptive to receiving feedback on how to make their inner world legible to the outer world,” Downing reflects. Additionally, Kapur emphasized the “digital” component of digital storytelling to help students enhance their storytelling abilities. 

For instance, one student was hesitant to edit his own story due to discomfort with his voice while taking testosterone. Using Descript’s AI-based editing software, Kapur enabled the student to edit his story without hearing his voice, alleviating the student’s anxiety and allowing him to fully engage in the storytelling process.  

For Kapur, teaching this class was transformative. As a Sikh man leading this project among Iowans and Quaker communities, Kapur drew on his experiences of feeling “othered” and sought common ground with the participants. “I don’t know what it is like to work in a rural Iowa farm or to have a farm passed down to me from another generation, but I recognize that my Punjabi heritage is rooted in farmland. It’s rooted in agriculture. For me, this class was a practice of seeing myself reflected in someone else,” he shares.