18 Mar A Day in the Life of a Science Communication Specialist

Something I’ve grown to love about working in the communications field is that no two days look the same! While the number of projects happening at any one time can be daunting, I enjoy the challenge of working on various assignments. From Science Delivery to Legislative Affairs, I’m excited that I am able to gain experience in so many facets of science communication!

Tea or coffee in hand, I log on for the day at 8:00 am. After checking my emails, I typically start my morning with my most writing-intensive projects. This could be drafting a news release, writing articles for the RMRS’s internal newsletter, or prepping social media posts for the upcoming week. In addition to writing pieces myself, I often help copy-edit pieces written by my team members. Copy-editing is a crucial part of the writing process, as we make sure that all public-facing media gets three sets of eyes on it before being shared with the rest of the world.

Recently, Legislative Affairs has been a top priority, as we are getting ready to send out letters to Senators and Representatives in RMRS’s footprint. I’ve been helping this effort by preparing letter templates, identifying the appropriate staffer to send the letters to, and keeping tabs on what the Senators and Representatives of Region 3 (AZ & NM) are saying about the Wildfire Crisis Strategy, environmental policy, or anything else related to RMRS’s work. I’ve long thought I should learn more about our political system and the people who represent me, so this project has been an excellent opportunity to become more familiar with those who speak for my new Arizona home and my neighbors in New Mexico!

Before logging off for the day, I typically catch up on some more administrative tasks, such as entering information about media inquiries into a tracking sheet, entering “In the News” items to our website, and answering any emails I missed during the day. I often meet with team members in the afternoon so that we can coordinate projects and discuss any roadblocks we’ve encountered. I love the collaborative aspect of my position, and I feel thankful that I work with a group of people who value creativity, friendliness, and teamwork.