Contact: Nikki Dictson, 979-458-5915, n-dictson@tamu.edu
Amy Hays, 580-223-5810, aehays@noble.org
AUSTIN – The Texas Watershed Planning Program of the Texas Water Resources Institute will hold a social media workshop for natural resources professionals April 13-14 at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, 12100 Park 35 Circle in Austin.
A “Finding Success for Science Through Social Media – Tips, Tools and Tactics for Natural Resource Professionals” presentation will be from 1-4 p.m. April 13 and 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. April 14 in Room 201 A, Building B of the TCEQ office.
Participants must register for both days, and the registration cost is $100 for both presentations.
Amy Hays of Ardmore, Oklahoma, who has conducted the training for the past five years, will present “Finding your Tribe” April 13. This training is designed address who is using what social media platforms and what platforms they should use.
“We will do some hands-on learning to discover where their tribe is and how their message can reach them,” she said. “We will look at some of the new platforms as well as their materials and where they want to use them.”
Hays said the April 14 presentation “Getting Found with all the Noise” will examine some of the biggest social media outlets to learn how writing changes between them.
“We’ll go through various exercises to help them build good content,” she said. “We will look at some additional graphics and analysis tools to help refine their reach.”
Nikki Dictson, AgriLife Extension program specialist, College Station, said the program is sponsoring this workshop to help natural resources professionals involved in watershed protection planning to better use and understand the role social media can play in interacting with stakeholders.
“By better understanding how to use the various social media platforms, these professionals will be able to connect with more stakeholders and provide more information quickly,” Dictson said. “Getting a dialogue going through social media will benefit the watershed planning process.”
For more information or to register for the workshop, go to http://bit.ly/2noL8MX.
The Texas Watershed Planning Program is funded through a Clean Water Act nonpoint grant provided by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The Texas Water Resources Institute is part of Texas A&M AgriLife Research, the AgriLife Extension and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University.
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