When I worked for an international NGO between 2007 and 2009, I realised that there is a tendency in humanitarian organisations to fall into cliché storytelling:

Person A had a problem. NGO B showed up and enrolled person A in their program. Then person’s A life improved significantly and he/she can now be happy again.

The cliché isn’t completely wrong, but it doesn’t respect and mirror the complexity of people’s lives. It is important to me to show the dignity of people. I am convinced that authentic stories resonate with any audience and that humanitarian organisations have lots of real stories of aid delivery that deserve to be told. Stories that inspire hope, educate and make people think.

Beside my journalistic work I consult today humanitarian aid organisations, helping them to develop high quality communication material with a focus on documentary film productions. I collaborate with a network of professional photographers and cameramen to ensure an excellent output in sound and pictures.

For a short overview document, please download: Communication Consultant_Susanne M Krauss. Let’s get in touch!