The Narrative Transformation Lab

What The Narrative Transformation Lab does

The Narrative Transformation Lab (TNT Lab) is an academic research laboratory established in 2022 within George Mason University's Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. It operates as part of the Carter School's Peace Labs initiative and is based at Mason Square in Arlington, Virginia. The lab is directed by Solon Simmons, Associate Professor and author of Root Narrative Theory and Conflict Resolution (Routledge, 2020), with Audrey Williams serving as Lab Manager. Its purpose is to develop and disseminate narrative transformation theory as a discipline for peacebuilding and conflict resolution, addressing the gap between academic narrative theory and practitioner application.

TNT Lab's core offerings center on a proprietary body of narrative frameworks: Root Narrative Theory (a four-worldview model—securitarian, libertarian, egalitarian, dignitarian), Story Grammar, the Ternary Structure of Narrative, and Basic Plot Types for Peace and Justice. These are published as free Narrative Transformation Guides alongside the Narrative Themography (a curated compendium of excerpts on narrative building blocks), the RNT Coding Guide (for systematic textual analysis), the Root Narrative Profile Quiz (a Qualtrics-hosted self-assessment), and Rabbit Hole long-form articles on niche narrative topics. Graduate-level coursework (CONF 704, 705, 757) is offered through the Carter School, and the lab runs weekly virtual meetings, an annual Carter School Peace Week event, public workshops, and an affiliate/partner program spanning academics, activists, artists, journalists, policymakers, NGO professionals, private sector practitioners, and students. An affiliated 2024 initiative, the K-Art Song Cultural Bridge Project, extends the methodology into cross-cultural peace diplomacy through Korean music.

The lab's business model is non-commercial: it is funded as part of a public state university, generates no revenue, charges no fees for any of its resources, and has no external investors or funding rounds. Its customer base consists of free users—students, scholars, practitioners, and storytellers—rather than paying accounts, and its growth is measured in intellectual output, community engagement, and partnerships rather than financial metrics.

Name

The Narrative Transformation Lab

Legal name

George Mason University

Website

https://tntlab.carterschool.gmu.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Peace and Conflict Resolution Education

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

akta.pro primary industry

Post-Conflict Recovery, Reconciliation & Social Cohesion Programs (BPADAFAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Change Management & Transformation (Org/HR) (BPACAJAD), Online & Hybrid Creative Writing Workshops (EDAMAMAL)

Keywords

• Narrative transformation theory
• Peacebuilding education resources
• Conflict resolution research
• Storytelling frameworks
• Root narrative analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

Arlington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. University Research Lab Operations: TNT Lab operates as a research laboratory within George Mason University's Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. It receives institutional funding from the university and does not generate commercial revenue. All resources, guides, tools, and events are provided free of charge to the public. The lab was established in 2022 as part of the Carter School's Peace Labs initiative.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Narrative Transformation Lab is an academic research laboratory at George Mason University's Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution that develops and disseminates free educational resources, theoretical frameworks, interactive tools, and graduate coursework on narrative transformation for peacebuilding and conflict resolution. It also operates community engagement programs including weekly virtual lab meetings, public workshops, and an affiliated cross-cultural initiative (K-Art Song Cultural Bridge Project).

Product overview

The Narrative Transformation Lab is an academic research and education hub at George Mason University's Carter School that provides narrative transformation resources, tools, and programs. Its offerings include Narrative Transformation Guides (Story Grammar, Root Narrative Theory, Ternary Structure of Narrative, Basic Plot Types), the Narrative Themography resource library, Narrative Coursework at the graduate level (CONF 704, 705, 757), interactive tools (Root Narrative Profile Quiz), and the K-Art Song Cultural Bridge Project. The lab also produces Rabbit Holes—exploratory content series on niche narrative topics—and analytical tools like the RNT Coding Guide. Together, these resources serve academics, students, and practitioners seeking to understand and apply narrative approaches to peacebuilding and conflict resolution.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Narrative Transformation Guides A collection of educational guides including Story Grammar, The Ternary Structure of Narrative, Root Narrative Theory, and Basic Plot Types for Peace and Justice, providing frameworks for understanding narrative transformation. Targeted at academics, students, peacebuilders, journalists, and storytellers.
• Narrative Themography A curated collection of excerpts from scholars and storytellers about narrative building blocks and the craft of storytelling, organized under themes including General Concepts, Building Blocks, and Peace/Conflict categories. Maintained by undergraduate research interns.
• Narrative Coursework Graduate-level courses including CONF 704 (Narrative Approaches to Conflict Analysis), CONF 705 (Conflict and Discourse Analysis), and CONF 757 (Conflict and Literature) offered through the Carter School. Targeted at Carter School graduate students.
• Root Narrative Profile Quiz An online quiz that helps users discover their 'justice language' by identifying their root narrative profile based on Root Narrative Theory. Targeted at the general public, students, and practitioners.
• K-Art Song Cultural Bridge Project An affiliated project using Korean Art Songs and cross-cultural narratives to foster empathy and peacebuilding, featuring storytelling workshops, publications, and a global peace diplomacy network. Targeted at cultural diplomats, musicians, and peacebuilders.
• Rabbit Holes

Quantifiable outcome

• TNT Lab's Narrative Themography is curated and updated by a team of undergraduate researchers and is planned for regular updates (next in Spring 2026).
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Korean Art Song Resource CentercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024An external partner providing curated resources and expertise on Korean Art Song. The K-Art Song Cultural Bridge Project, an affiliated TNT Lab initiative, uses cross-cultural narratives embedded in Korean Art Songs to foster empathy and peacebuilding through music and storytelling.
• Korean Cultural Center in Washington D.C.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024The Korean Cultural Center in Washington D.C. partners with the K-Art Song Cultural Bridge Project to advance cross-cultural understanding and peace diplomacy through Korean arts and music. The partnership supports workshops and cultural programming that align with TNT Lab's peace and narrative transformation mission.
• Mason Center for Healthy Communities (MHCR)supportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024An internal George Mason University partner organization that collaborates with TNT Lab on community health and wellbeing initiatives, integrating narrative transformation approaches into community-building and peace diplomacy work.
• Think Peace HubsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024A peacebuilding organization that partners with the K-Art Song Cultural Bridge Project to advance intercultural understanding and community building through creative peace diplomacy initiatives.
• Mason ExhibitionssupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024A George Mason University exhibitions program that co-organized the '(Dream) Roads to Home and Peace' workshop with the K-Art Song Cultural Bridge Project, providing event space and curation support for narrative and peace-focused programming.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Conciliation Resources: International peacebuilding NGO focused on conflict transformation, dialogue, and narrative-based peace processes. Directly comparable to TNT Lab in combining practitioner training with storytelling and narrative approaches to conflict resolution, at greater operational scale.
• Peace Direct: International NGO that partners with local peacebuilders and emphasizes narrative change as a core methodology for preventing violent conflict. Comparable to TNT Lab in narrative-focused peacebuilding philosophy, though Peace Direct focuses on funding and amplifying local partners rather than producing academic theory.
• Berghof Foundation: European peace research and implementation organization producing theoretical frameworks, training, and educational content on conflict transformation. Directly comparable to TNT Lab in combining academic research with practitioner-oriented tools, with shared emphasis on narrative and conflict dynamics.

Broad incumbents

• Search for Common Ground: Global peacebuilding organization that explicitly works at the intersection of narrative, storytelling, and conflict transformation. Comparable to TNT Lab in mission orientation toward narrative approaches to peace, but operates at much greater scale with field programs across dozens of countries.
• United States Institute of Peace (USIP): U.S. federal institution dedicated to conflict prevention and resolution globally. Comparable to TNT Lab in producing research, training, and educational resources for peacebuilders, though USIP operates with significantly larger budget, staff, and programmatic scope.
• International Crisis Group: Global organization producing field-based conflict analysis and policy recommendations. Overlaps with TNT Lab's narrative analysis mission at the level of conflict research, though Crisis Group focuses on geopolitical analysis rather than narrative theory frameworks.
• Harvard Negotiation Project: Harvard-based research program producing frameworks and educational content for conflict resolution practitioners. Comparable to TNT Lab as a university-embedded research-to-practice hub producing widely adopted conflict methodologies, though HNP focuses on negotiation rather than narrative.

Emerging players

• Plus Narrative: Emerging organization explicitly focused on narrative change for peace and justice outcomes. Directly comparable to TNT Lab in mission and methodology, though smaller and more advocacy-oriented rather than research-driven.
• Toda Peace Institute: Independent policy research institute producing research on peacebuilding, narrative, and conflict transformation. Comparable to TNT Lab as a research-focused entity producing narrative-related frameworks for peacebuilders, with comparable academic orientation and global scope.

Others

• George Mason University Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution: Parent academic institution housing TNT Lab and producing the CONF 704, 705, 757 coursework referenced by the lab. Comparable as the broader school ecosystem, though it operates as a degree-granting academic unit rather than a research lab.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/tntlabgmu
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@tntlabgmu
• Facebookfacebook.com/tntlabgmu
• Instagraminstagram.com/tntlabgmu
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tntlab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Narrative Transformation Lab