Amplify Your Impact as a Community Connector
After more than 15 years of managing an educational resource focused on plants, art, and environmental education (EE), I turned my attention to the creative people I often met at events — freelance educators and individuals who started a practice to enhance our understanding of the world we live in.
I began my current work with an assertion.
Freelance environmental educators are uniquely positioned to create change in communities because of their ability to move through communities.
Thanks to the generous podcast guests who shared stories about their work and why they started it, we have learned that freelancers are on the ground and working in communities in many ways.
Today I make a new assertion, and it is this:
Now is the time for freelance environmental educators to amplify their impact.
Why?
They are more agile than the institutions and organizations facing current challenges around funding and content. They can serve as the bridge between the EE field, their respective specialties, and communities and work alongside organizations.
Sarah Johnson, interdisciplinary climate educator and founder of Wild Rose Education, is an example of someone amplifying their impact in the face of concerning circumstances. She partners with teachers and organizations and creates opportunities like the upcoming Youth Climate Summit. Sarah's Wild Rose Education will celebrate 10 Years of Impacts this year.
We've had many opportunities on the podcast to learn from individuals who do not call themselves environmental educators and who are not members of traditional EE organizations. I intend to continue reaching out to environmental professionals from diverse sectors and be in conversation with them for both the podcast and this newsletter. Not only do I want to highlight their roles, I hope to show how environmental education occurs everywhere and in different ways.
I have been reflecting on The Freelance Project a lot and was surprised to discover you and I have had the opportunity to learn from 89 podcast guests! Through the podcast, we've had the chance to learn from individuals who do biophilic design, contribute to the planning of public spaces, inspire an interest in birds, start schools, and launch professional practices, too many to mention in one sentence. We've also learned from researchers, authors, and individuals involved in professional development.
There is so much more to learn and more to do.
How might you amplify your impact and serve as a bridge connecting your specialties and environmental education?
Consider adding your events to the EE Forward calendar. Tell your local and professional communities what you're doing. Then, share the calendar with your audience. This not only brings attention to your event(s) but also to other environmental events.
Be in community with fellow freelance practitioners. Select a professional development event on the community calendar or join a workshop or conversation led by a colleague.
Participate in conversations about the challenges of freelancing, science communication, and working in communities.
Over the past months, I've mentioned my journalism studies. I immersed myself in these studies after realizing journalism has been a part of every project I have completed — from a six-page newsletter about botanical art that grew to 20 pages, to the educational resource mentioned above to the many written and audio interviews I've conducted. I hope to one day share news that articles about The Freelance Project and related topics have been published in other publications. While I work on this, I want to thank you for your interest and good company throughout this project.
