How do you define the value of a place? Throughout 2024, Storyboard sought to answer that question by facilitating community engagement in Columbus, Indiana in support of the Atlas of Bartholomew Culture. The Atlas, which Storyboard helped conceptualize, is envisioned as an interactive online tool for stakeholders and decision-makers as they work within the built environment of Bartholomew County. It aims to embed community values at every level of decision-making, impacting the community by telling the story of the County’s most important places and making information and resources readily available. 

The first step of this effort is to identify the places and buildings that hold the most value with members of the community. The initiative was launched through a participatory mapping process through which participants were invited to identify places and buildings in Downtown Columbus that are important to them and describe the types of value they hold. Storyboard designed and facilitated this engagement at multiple community events, including several Exhibit Columbus events and Love Where You Live Day.