Storyboard is working with the Landmark Columbus Foundation to establish a deeper understanding of community values of cultural heritage. To build the Atlas of Bartholomew Culture, Storyboard created in-person and digital participatory mapping tools for Bartholomew County residents to identify the places that are most important to them, and why. The maps enable participants to assign a type of value to each place (historic, iconic, social, spiritual, or aesthetic), and to contribute an open-ended response with their personal stories. These stories will be collected in an online database, the Atlas of Bartholomew Culture, as a resource and a tool for residents and stakeholders who live and work in the built environment of Bartholomew County. Through this cultural heritage assessment, pop-up community engagements, and a survey of already-identified cultural heritage, the project will promote a values-based decision-making process to positively impact significant places throughout the county.

This effort launched at the Community Kick-off for the fifth cycle of Exhibit Columbus with a mapping activity that invited participants to place markers on buildings or spaces that are important to them. Storyboard also brought the activity to the Heritage Fund’s annual Love Where You Live Event, collecting stories and values from Bartholomew County families. At the the 2024 Exhibit Columbus Symposium, Storyboard focused on values related to the four featured Miller Prize sites with creative postcard prompts related to each site. Development of the final Atlas of Bartholomew Culture is ongoing.