Collaborating With Local Changemakers
The Key To Impactful Media-Focused Study Tours
For media professors leading study abroad programs, one of the greatest challenges is finding meaningful, immersive story ideas that engage students deeply with local culture. As outsiders, it can feel overwhelming to quickly connect with the community in a way that’s authentic, respectful, and insightful. This is where the power of collaboration comes into play, specifically by working with local changemakers—social impact organizations and leaders making a difference in their communities.
Through our years of experience at Actuality Abroad, we’ve discovered that partnering with local changemakers not only makes the storytelling process more impactful but also provides students with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to connect with global challenges through a solutions-oriented lens.
The Power of Collaboration: A Direct Connection to the Community
When you partner with local changemakers, you gain an instant ‘in’ with the community. These organizations are deeply rooted in their local cultures, working on issues that are both critical and meaningful. For media students, this collaboration opens the door to deeper connections, allowing them to move beyond surface-level tourism and engage authentically with the community. If you’d like to see examples of how these partnerships have transformed student storytelling projects, visit our Instagram for highlights from past expeditions, or check out completed films on our YouTube channel.
How to Find and Collaborate with Changemakers
Finding the right local partners may seem daunting, but it’s actually a straightforward process when approached thoughtfully. At Actuality Abroad, we begin by researching social impact organizations through trusted databases such as Idealist.org, Vital Voices, and Ashoka. Once we identify potential partners, we reach out with a simple ask: to collaborate on a student-led storytelling project. We start with a survey to gauge interest and compatibility, followed by detailed conversations to set clear expectations for both parties.
Through this process, we select partners who offer a visually compelling story or whose mission aligns with the interests of the students and university. This early groundwork ensures that the collaboration is meaningful and well-suited for a student project.
Our Approach: Integrating Changemaker Partnerships Across All Programs
At Actuality Abroad, this is the approach we use for all of our programs when partnering with universities as a program provider for documentary tours and travel courses. Whether it’s a 7-day documentary tour or a month-long travel course, we integrate changemaker partnerships as a foundational element of our media-focused programs. By aligning students with grassroots organizations from the very start, we ensure that each project is grounded in real-world issues that resonate on a global scale while also offering deep cultural immersion.
This approach allows us to create an educational experience where students can both learn from and contribute to the communities they engage with. As they document the work of local changemakers, students develop critical media-making skills while telling stories that matter—stories that make a difference.
Why It Matters to Work with Changemakers
For students, collaborating with local changemakers provides them with a unique opportunity to form relationships with local leaders, hear their stories firsthand, and craft media projects that really matter. They move beyond capturing trendy or easily accessible content and instead focus on stories that contribute to solving global challenges. These experiences deepen their understanding of ethical storytelling while also giving them the chance to develop their skills in a way that’s truly impactful.
Collaborative Storytelling as Justice Work
One aspect that sets Actuality Abroad apart is our commitment to collaborative storytelling. When done right, collaborative storytelling is justice work—it challenges the power dynamics inherent in documentary filmmaking. Instead of extracting stories from a community, we work with local changemakers to ensure the stories we tell are dignified, accurate, and empowering.
“The impact of these collaborations extends beyond the final media product. The stories we help tell are valuable tools that changemakers can use to amplify their mission and attract resources. Additionally, when a group of mediamakers, even students, dedicates their time and attention to documenting the work of local changemakers, it sends a powerful message to the broader community. This external recognition can elevate the status of the changemakers and their work, often leading to increased visibility, respect, and support within their own community—all while keeping the focus on their impactful solutions.”
Advice for Study Tour Leaders
If you’re interested in replicating this model, here’s what we’ve learned:
1. Set clear expectations. Make sure both you and the organization understand the time and access required.
2. Spend time researching before filming. Half of your time in-country should be spent on understanding the story and preparing to tell it well.
3. Collaborate to avoid extraction. Work with your partners to co-create the story, ensuring it’s told ethically and respectfully.
4. Commit to finishing the project. Many changemakers have been burned by filmmakers who don’t complete their work. Ensure that you not only finish but also deliver the final media in a usable format.
For trip leaders who want additional support in facilitating these kinds of collaborations, there are also options available. At Actuality Abroad, we’ve built our entire model around connecting students with changemakers through documentary storytelling. With years of experience in this space, we’re here to help guide your students through the process, from identifying the right partners to producing meaningful media that makes a real difference.
Collaborating with local changemakers offers media students an invaluable opportunity to connect with global challenges through a solutions-oriented lens, while also providing them with the tools and experiences needed to tell stories that truly matter. If you’re a media professor leading a study tour, consider incorporating this approach into your program. You’ll be amazed at how transformative the experience can be—for both your students and the communities they serve.