Hi again everyone! This is Mikay, the summer scholar working for the Eat Oregon Seafood (EOS) initiative. My role this summer is to expand the media platforms of Eat Oregon Seafood in an effort to promote local seafood consumption. Since my last post, quite a bit has happened! I hashed out drafts for a video project and social media campaign for EOS. I also did site visits and met both of my mentors, Jamie and Angee, in person!
My work schedule varies quite a bit day-to-day depending on if I am working virtually or visiting a site. So far I have been more virtual than in-person, but as the summer goes on I will be visiting different businesses across Oregon for interviews for my “Oregon Seafood Journey” media campaign. When I am visiting a coastal site, I usually work from 9 to 5 (cue Dolly Parton) from my desk at home. Much of my day is computer work involving anything from making infographics to editing videos to doing research online. I have been perfecting the platforms “Canva” and “DaVinci 17” for my infographic and video making. I would highly recommend using Canva to anyone who wants to spice up their research posters, presentations, or really any other form of science communication. It is very user-friendly and can make very professional media. DaVinci has a much larger learning curve, but once you figure it out it is great to use for short or long video projects.
In addition to computer work, I am able to interact with people daily for my job. I have team meetings with my mentors once a week but often end up emailing them daily to send media drafts and get advice on various aspects of the projects I am working on. Angee and Jamie are full of great advice and are always happy to help! I have also been connecting with a range of businesses across the coast and setting up interviews. My first interview will be with “South Bay Wild”, a restaurant that sells locally caught seafood out of Astoria, Oregon. I plan to meet with them tomorrow and hear all about their business! I was also able to visit both Newport and Coos Bay to meet Angee and Jamie. We toured the docks at both locations, visited with some of the other fishery-related extension workers, and discussed the challenges that each fishing community is facing. In Coos Bay, I was able to try out some fancy camera equipment in order to shoot some film for introductory seafood videos I am working on for the EOS website. I have been working on the videos, but they are still not quite where I want them to be. Hopefully, I can get some fun shots in Astoria this weekend!
COVID has made this work much more virtual than most years, but one thing I am most looking forward to is “Shop at the Docks”. Starting July 23rd Newport will be hosting tours of the docks to try and help people buy fresh seafood directly from fishermen. I am super excited to interact with both local consumers and fishermen in order to try and build up these relationships and increase local buy-in into seafood.
One of the non-work-related items I have been working on daily is getting my knee back to normal. I tore my ACL earlier this year while playing ultimate frisbee. I ended up not having enough time to get surgery and recover before leaving for my master’s program, so I have been going all out with physical therapy to try and get my knee working normally again. I usually start or end (when I don’t get out of bed early enough to make it home before 9) my workday with one or two hours at the gym. The exercise also helps me focus and re-energize which I find keeps me more productive during work.
These first four weeks have been fun, but I am even more excited for the weeks to come!
