Social Media and Public Outreach Intern with Mary Washington’s Office of Sustainability
This page highlights my accomplishments and duties throughout my internship by showing social media posts I have created, as well as the proposal for a plant giveaway initiative I have kickstarted to boost student engagement with sustainability on campus.
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This post details the negative environmental impacts of fast fashion, brands that follow this harmful trend, and sustainable alternatives that are accessible and cost effective.
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This post details the positive environmental and social impacts of trees, that are often overlooked, as well as the various efforts the university takes to preserve the trees in the area.
My role as the social media and public outreach intern for my university’s Office of Sustainability has greatly advanced my experience with Canva. For this position I have used Canva to make informational and visually pleasing social media posts about sustainability efforts that the campus is focused on, and eco-friendly choices that students can make to reduce their environmental footprints. Examples of my posts can be seen above. After creating these posts, I have also enhanced my ability to present scientific data in a creative and visually pleasing manner. The topics I discuss in my posts, such as deforestation and methane emissions, are not regularly associated with everyday choices like what clothing one chooses to wear. Highlighting these connections in an aesthetically pleasing way makes audiences more likely to absorb the facts I am presenting.
This is the plant giveaway proposal I created, outlining the inspiration and potential benefits of the initiative. Additionally, this document includes a breakdown of the allotted budget for the needed plants and materials.
Additionally, this position has allowed me to further develop my problem-solving skills and ability to take initiative. After completing our first tabling event, I noticed the Office of Sustainability’s table lacked a way to attract students and make the experience more memorable. Students would briefly stop by our table or avoid it all together in favor of another organization’s set up. After analyzing the tables that were gathering the most foot traffic, I concluded that what we were missing was giveaway items. However, many customary giveaway items, like pens or shirts, are made of plastic or become waste. In order to align with the mission of the department, I wanted to ensure that what we offer is truly sustainable. This led me to create an indoor plant giveaway plan, offering easily managed indoor plants to students who engage with the Office of Sustainability during events. This document can be seen above. Although this project is still a work in progress, it has given me experience with proposal creation and budget allocation that can be transferred to future projects