A few years ago, we were still explaining to healthcare providers why stories mattered. Now we’re watching digital storytelling get built into a nursing curriculum, shape research plans, and gather real communities around hard conversations. I’m joined by Dr. Mike Lang, founder of Common Language Digital Storytelling and assistant professor in the University of Calgary Faculty of Nursing, for a candid update on what has shifted and what’s coming next.

Episode Key Messages

• Mike’s new role in the University of Calgary Faculty of Nursing and what it unlocks for digital storytelling in health and wellness
• Embedding digital stories into curriculum for specific learning outcomes and student conversations
• Strategic partnerships and why a facilitator collective helps the work spread with quality
• Uganda milestones and how community-led stories drive maternal, child, and adolescent health change
• Calgary Story Slam highlights and how stories open space for hard topics like grief and loss
• Format changes for the Story Slam and why live attendance feels different
• What the Common Language retreat builds through story share, deep craft talk, and momentum
• Growth in facilitator training and the increasing involvement of researchers
• New initiatives at U of C including Nurse Story, the Healing Lens Research Lab, and research on SIDS grief support
• Mike’s next meaningful moment idea and why noticing it matters

Other Links Mentioned

• Read this episode's blog post
• Watch the 2026 Common Language Story Slam
• Learn more about the work in Uganda & East Africa

About Our Guest

Dr. Michael Lang is an Assistant Professor (Teaching and Research) in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Calgary and Director of the Healing Lens Research Lab, a transdisciplinary research and creative practice lab dedicated to advancing documentary film and digital storytelling as rigorous, ethical, and impactful methodologies in health and wellness contexts. Situated within the Faculty of Nursing, the Lab brings together health researchers, clinicians, filmmakers, digital storytelling facilitators, educators, and community partners to explore how stories, when created and mobilized with care, can shape education, influence practice, and support individual and collective wellbeing. Dr. Lang’s work sits at the intersection of health research, documentary filmmaking, and knowledge translation, with a particular focus on how narrative and visual practices can deepen understanding of illness, caregiving, patient experience, and human flourishing. Over the past fifteen years, he has facilitated the creation of more than 1,000 digital stories with patients, family caregivers, healthcare providers, students, and community members, and has trained over 100 facilitators through Common Language Digital Storytelling, an international organization he founded to support ethical storytelling practice in healthcare, education, and community settings.

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