conference

Stuck at Home? #ShuckatHome Series /  by Lisa Tossey

What do you do when a pandemic hits, communities go into lockdown, restaurants close, and oyster growers shift their sales efforts to home cooks? You share some resources to help folks learn how to shuck and prepare the tasty bivalves in their own kitchens!

That’s how our Maryland Sea Grant “#ShuckatHome” video series came about at the start of stay-at-home orders for the COVID-19 pandemic a year ago — through a conversation with Aquaculture Extension specialists who were looking for ways to show consumers how easy it is to prepare and enjoy fresh, local shellfish at home. I gave the specialists tips on how to use their smartphones to record themselves in their own kitchens, they uploaded their “how to” clips onto a shared folder on Google Drive, then I created a custom opener and edited the pieces together into episodes. The videos are shared on YouTube channel and via our social media accounts.

I just took part in a session, The Sea Grant COVID-19 Response to the Needs of the Shellfish Industry, at the National Shellfisheries Association annual conference and presented on the series. See the abstract and video of that presentation below.

Here’s the latest episode of the series. The complete playlist can be viewed here.

2021 National Shellfisheries Association Annual Meeting, #Shellfish 21

Abstract: Taking public outreach into home kitchens: Stuck at home? #ShuckatHome!

Lisa D. Tossey & Shannon M. Hood

The rapid spread of coronavirus and the resulting lockdowns led to a host of challenges when it came to traditional approaches to public outreach. Widespread restaurant closures left oyster growers without the market where about 90 percent of their product is normally distributed. Consumers, eager to eat oysters, found themselves ill-equipped to open and prepare oysters in the home. With consumers, oyster growers, and Extension agents largely limited to the confines of their own homes in the Spring of 2020, Maryland Sea Grant Extension agents pivoted to a digital approach to showcase how the public could continue to enjoy oysters in their own home by sharing easy-to-follow preparation tips and recipes.

The team engaged a range of experts, including growers, extension specialists and students to demonstrate a variety of options for at-home oyster consumption. These included various shucking techniques, shuck-less methods, as well as recipe ideas well-suited to the home chef. Recorded using the technology growers and outreach specialists had on hand–smartphones–and produced by the program’s communications staff to have a consistent look and feel, the resulting ‘Shuck at Home’ series was planned so that episodes could be easily viewed across several social media platforms and YouTube. Optimizing the videos for this type of distribution allowed for a wider audience through social sharing and the use of targeted hashtags, as well as track shares and views through various platform analytics.

Here’s the video of that session:

#MAMEA18 in Portsmouth, Va. /  by Lisa Tossey

I always enjoy the annual conference of the Mid-Atlantic Marine Education Association (MAMEA) - it’s full of useful sessions as well as a fun weekend to catch up with my peers in the region and see what they have been doing in their own institutions and organizations. This year was especially cool, as I was elected as president-elect for the organization, which means I get to oversee next year’s conference. I have some fun ideas!

I presented a session on the use of VR/AR/MR (virtual, augmented, and mixed realities) in science communication and education and had some enthusiastic participants who also tried out some of the apps and headsets at the close of the session. Here is the Prezi I used during the presentation, as well as links to many examples, resources, and gear.

Spinning Science in 360° - MAMEA 2018 Conference

Direct Prezi link for sharing >

And here’s a Google Doc of all the links below for download >

I’m always happy to answer questions!

Examples & Resources for Communicating Science

Virtual Reality (VR)

360 Video

Augmented Reality (AR)

Mixed Reality

Cameras & Apps

Google Cardboard Camera

FOV 360 camera app (Apple iOS only)

Panorama 360. Camera

Insta360 camera line

Ricoh Theta camera line

GoPro Fusion camera (Note: I haven’t used this one personally & have heard mixed opinions on it)

Others I’ve tried & have not been thrilled with compared to the first two: Nikon KeyMission, 360Fly

Viewers & Platforms

Google Cardboard viewer app

Smartphone-based viewers:

Standalone headsets:

RoundMe

Thinglink - Sign up for their e-news, as they may have another Black Friday sale!

Google Tour Creator

Both YouTube & Vimeo now support 360 video

My Examples

DE Sea Grant on RoundMe

Thinglink

OceansOnline - Leading a discussion on digital storytelling at the 4th International Marine Conservation Congress in Newfoundland /  by Lisa Tossey

I was thrilled to be invited to the OceansOnline conference, which was held in conjunction with the 4th International Marine Conservation Congress in St. John's, Newfoundland in August. I led a discussion on Incorporating digital storytelling in marine science outreach and communication, and spoke about my current work with Delaware Sea Grant, including Project VIDEO, our joint work with the Center for Dark Energy Biosphere Investigations. 

We had an enthusiastic group for our discussion! 

We had an enthusiastic group for our discussion! 

We touched on everything from social media platforms, to using images and video in outreach efforts, to embracing new technologies such as virtual reality. 

Here are a few ideas and tips from the session that I pulled together after the session for the newsletter of Marine Ecosystems and Management (MEAM):

  • When it comes to social media, you don’t have to do it all! Take some time to “lurk” on various platforms to see how they’re used and what audiences tend to use them, then experiment on a few to see what might be the best fit for your field or organization.
  • Social media isn’t a one-way street – that’s why “social” is in its name! Don’t just use it to push out information – engage with other users and your followers, share information that’s relevant to your field or community, and have fun with it!
  • Images are truly worth 1,000 words online. Images drive engagement and an eye-catching photo, animated gif, or video clip can serve as a great “hook” to grab users’ attention in a sea of social media posts. Photos showing action, hands-on activities, or a detailed view of a critter or landscape can be particularly effective.
  • Post with purpose. You should always be able to connect your social media posts, whether they are a photo, link, or shared information, back to your work or organization’s mission. This helps to build your reputation as a trusted resource in your field.
  • Short format videos that are popular on platforms like Instagram are perfect vehicles for bite-sized, sharable science pieces. Use them to share fun “Did you know…” facts, highlight specific areas of work or critters being studied, or show scientific techniques.
  • And most importantly – don’t be afraid to experiment online. Try something new, assess how it works, tweak your approach if necessary, and try again!

If you’re interested in learning more about this, my Prezi presentation from the session is full of examples >> 

 

NAIINZ - Presenting overseas for the first time /  by Lisa Tossey

I was both thrilled and honored when my session proposal was accepted for the International Conference on Interpretation in Wellington, New Zealand, this month. It was hosted by Interpretation Network New Zealand (INNZ) and the National Association of Interpretation (NAI), of which I am a member. NAI is an organization that focuses on the art of engaging instruction, and works with historical and natural heritage educators who work in nature centers, zoos, aquariums, parks, museums, and historical and cultural sites.

Nearly all of the delegates present at the conference. Image courtesy of NAI 

Nearly all of the delegates present at the conference. Image courtesy of NAI 

This was truly an international conference, drawing in more than 130 delegates from over 12 counties. I was fortunate enough to be invited to present a 90-minute mini-workshop on my work using digital tools in informal science education. My session, Digital Storytelling – Engaging Others Using the Technology in your Pocket, drew over 25 participants who were eager to start incorporating social media and videos into their institution’s educational outreach plans.

My presentation focused heavily on the work I have been doing with the Delaware Sea Grant College Program and the related research I have undertaken as part of my Ed.D. portfolio work. In the days following my workshop I had several constructive follow-up conversations with participants, which progressed into email correspondence.

Shortly after the conclusion of the conference, I heard back from one participant, who works for the Department of Conservation in New Zealand, which manages about 40 percent of the country’s land and serves a similar function as our National Parks Service in the U.S. His role includes leading planning for their investment in storytelling in over 500 historic heritage sites throughout New Zealand, and he informed me that he was now looking at adding a digital outreach position due to what he learned in my session. That news and his kind words about my workshop really made the trip worthwhile for me.

Exploring a protected marine reserve during our field trip day along the southern coast of the North Island

Exploring a protected marine reserve during our field trip day along the southern coast of the North Island

In addition to concurrent sessions at the venue, the conference also offered a day of offsite sessions in several tracks. I was thrilled that one track was focused on marine science education, and joined the “Fishy Tales” field trip to a university coastal ecology laboratory, a local marine education center and aquarium, and a coastal interpretive site in a protected marine reserve. These site visits not only provided a chance to get out in the field and experience different educational venues in the region, but also offered excellent networking opportunities and a nice break mid-conference from being confined in the official venue.

I had visited New Zealand once before, and was awed by its natural beauty and welcoming people then, so I was eager to return. This conference both reinforced that first impression and built upon it, allowing me to experience its environmental wonders firsthand, but more importantly, make genuine connections with other educators and administrators who are working tirelessly to educate others about, and protect, the country’s rich heritage and natural resources.

Here's a short video of the traditional Maori ceremony that opened the conference. I shot snippets of audio and video throughout with my phone and pieced them together using iMovie as an example of editing video on the fly for my workshop >

The sights and sounds of the opening Powhiri, or traditional Maori welcome, which kicked off the International Conference on Interpretation in Wellington, NZ, in April 2016.

The Prezi I used during my workshop to highlight examples of what we were touching on >