Slacker or Worker: the new look of PR

I want to take a little bit of a detour from water conservation to talk about social media.  I know, I know, this isn’t why you’re reading this blog, BUT, I have found that within our office, it’s become a huge topic of discussion.  I’ve forced myself into the forefront of social media on behalf of the Athens-Clarke County Water Conservation Office, and sometimes I wonder if I’ve jumped in over my head.

What I mean is I’ve had zero professional training.  I’ve taken zero classes on PR, marketing, journalism, or any other subject that would be remotely useful for expanding social media expertise.  And yet, here I am, forcing my way into this foreign world of computers and instant communication.  I’ve dragged my coworkers and bosses with me: better to make a journey like this with a team than to make it alone, I’m thankful for the support Team Water has given me.

But. There’s always a “but,” isn’t there? 

Though we’ve taken a huge step forward into the world of technology, we’re still creatures of habit.  We still view Facebook as a procrastination tool, as something that is not productive, that doesn’t classify as “work.”  We still feel uncomfortable with Twitter, with the idea that constantly tweeting, retweeting, and reading tweets is actually doing something worth being paid for.  Blogging still feels like writing in a journal, not connecting with a public that is genuinely interested in what our office is doing, and why it matters.  Pinterest sounds like another time-waster, not something useful for expanding your brand recognition.  I could go on, but you get the picture.

So what’s the deal?  Why am I complaining about sitting on Facebook and getting paid to do it?  Well…because I’m struggling with seeing it as acceptable.  

But it is.  

It’s very clear that Twitter and Facebook have done lots of work in furthering our conservation message.  Those of you that are on Facebook, Twitter, and the blog-o-sphere for fun DO see our conservation messages, our links, our photos, our events, our tweets, and (hopefully), they get you thinking about our water supply.  A huge part of our responsibility as the Water Conservation Office is outreach: getting across the importance of our Athens water, and the wise use of it.  How are messages received in today’s world?  Through TweetDeck, your Facebook inbox, and those handy apps on your phone.  That alone, I think, gives me permission to use those tools to speak to you.

Last “but,” I promise.  But what do you think?  Do you think I’m playing around all day?  Do you think this is a valuable endeavor?  Do you benefit from my incessant communication?  The most important thing I want to keep in mind during all these outreach efforts is: is this actually working?  Are those that I am speaking to actually listening?  If not, how can I change what I’m doing?  I do want to hear from you, my readers.  If I get responses, I’ll formulate a follow-up post with your ideas, thoughts, and I’ll give credit where credit is due.  So please tell me: what do you think?

Annaliese Ashley-Intern

Who am I, Why am I here?

Blog number two.  If you’re reading this, it means that blog number 1 went over well with the office…Success! 

The beauty of a blog is it’s like a conversation; it’s a place through which I can use my own voice to break down things into a language that is relatable.  I can sit here and type to you and it’s as if we’re sitting at Jittery Joe’s discussing this over a cup of their fabulous coffee. 

So, let’s talk.  I am the summer intern for the Water Conservation Office.  I have been working closely with our education specialist (Laurie) on all of the outreach programs she runs during the summer.  We have been to Sandy Creek Day Camp, Athens Montessori, Timothy Baptist, East Athens Community Center, Athfest…the list goes on.  Every time we take a trip, we bring with us toys, tools, tricks, and tips about water conservation and wise use.  It’s fun!  Watching the kids begin to understand the importance of water conservation is really neat.

In addition to helping Laurie lead these programs, I have also spent time expanding the office’s use of social media.  We have a twitter now (check our links page to follow us!), and we have this blog.  It’s crazy how much this outdoor-loving girl has been glued to a computer over the past two months. 

But I digress, what I really wanted to talk to you about was this office.  Who are we? What do we do? Why are we here?

The Water Conservation Office (WCO) is part of the county government for Athens-Clarke County.  This office is nested within the Public Utilities Department.  The unique thing about the WCO is that although we’re a utilities office, we also do a lot of educational outreach programs.  It seems strange, for a governmental office to be doing as much outreach and as many community events as we do—the government’s job is rules, regulations, etc…right?

Well, maybe.  But I think it’s wonderful that the WCO does as much as it does: what better way to ensure the communication of our purpose than through the sponge-like minds of the children of Athens? 

What is our purpose, you say?  Officially, “the goal of the Water Conservation Office is to ensure water use efficiency so that water demand does not exceed the safe yield of our water supply and related environmental concerns.”  Sound like economics to you? Hey, me too!  But supply and demand is ubiquitous; it happens outside of economics too.  Demand for something cannot exceed the supply, else you have some demanders that are quite unsatisfied.  The water conservation office works very hard to give you the best information we can on how to keep the supply alive…that is, how Athens can keep our water around. 

I find I take water for granted far too often.  Georgia isn’t exactly known for her deserts…we have lakes, streams, rivers, creeks, pools, ponds, reservoirs…we have water.  In fact, it wasn’t until I started working for the water conservation office that I realized just how close this city has come to being without water.  We’ve come really close.  Even now, despite our off-and-on-rain, we are pulling from our reservoir, not our usual water source of the Middle and North Oconee Rivers.  This means our rivers are too dry for us to use their water:  

We could, I suppose, use the river until it runs dry, but remember supply and demand? People--especially people from Athens-Clarke county--aren’t the only ones who are in demand of water.  The rivers flow into other counties not under the WCO’s jurisdiction, the rivers feed the bank-side trees, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers, and animals.  This brings us to a very important phrase in the office’s mission statement: “safe yield.”  Yield and safe yield are two very different ideas.  The desire to maintain safe yield is why it’s called the Water Conservation Office, not the Water Use Office.

I think it’s neat that the WCO cares about not only getting water to you, but keeping it coming.  The people in this office: my bosses Marilyn and Laurie, my fellow intern Jackie, even the accountant and administrative assistant…they all love water.  It’s amazing to see a group of people who love their jobs, who understand the importance of their work every single day.  Their goal here is to keep Athens hydrated: with water and with good conservation practices.  Yes, the drought is hard, the watering restrictions make gardening difficult, but when you step back and think about the big Athens-wide picture, watering your garden too often could mean the difference in having drinking water at the end of the summer or not having it.  It seems dismal to put it like that, but I cannot help but think that way.  The office works very diligently to ensure that we don’t run out, the best thing I think I can do, and you too, is to give them a hand.  

-Annaliese Ashley, Intern

Water Blogging

So this is new: a government organization blogging.  

 As an intern, I’m nervous to be the first to post on this blog for the Water Conservation Office of Athens-Clarke County (GA).  As a college student, I’m in awe that I’m about to be writing on behalf of a part of our government.  Guess this girl is growing up.

It’s amazing to think that technology has come far enough that I can follow the DOA, DOI, the White House, and NPR on Twitter, that I can have national parks respond to my thoughts, ideas, and concerns.  I feel so important…but so is everyone else.  There’s something fascinating, and unendingly confusing, about how instant our communication has become.  Twitter has exploded over the last several years, with followers and with news: it is a constant bombardment of news flashes, trending topics, sneak peeks, and conversations.  The bombardment can be so quick it will make your head spin, but once you get your sea-legs…it’s kind of invigorating.  Blogs are no different.  Pinterest has really expanded the platform bloggers have through which they reach readers. 
But how do we fit in all this?  How does a government agency belong in this new instant world? Do we belong?

The answer is a resounding and unequivocal yes.

We must belong.
If we cannot find our own way to flow into this new technological age...where does that leave us?  Washed up on the shores of old things: floppy disks, 8tracks, phone books, and VHS.  

"But how, you're a government institution, it's not like you just go away..." True.  But.  Do you know what we do? Do you know why we do what we do? Do you know who we are, or why we matter?  Chances are, probably not.  The general reader probably has a basic idea...maybe gathered from our "About me" tab...but that only scratches the surface: a tip of the iceberg sort of thing.

So here's a glimpse at the rest of the iceberg: we're passionate about water.  Everything about it.  How much there is, how clean it is, how it gets to you, how we get it back from you, how we take care of it, how our rivers are doing, how much we are using, and how we can build a better community through water education.  Turns out, a blog is the perfect place for us to share these things with you, for you to learn with us, to experience water the way we do.

Maybe the technological age isn't so bad!  The advances in "social media" have really accomplished a lot: they've made it so easy for us to be "social" with everyone else.  Now you can see how we think, why we do what we do, what we know, how we react to water-disasters...the list goes on.  Now you can comment on our posts, have your voice heard, have an instant conversation with a governmental organization that used to be "just" a building downtown.

Even if all this social media is confusing and in-your-face, it truly gives us a unique opportunity to become instantly accessible to anyone.  And everyone.  To you.

-Annaliese Ashley, Intern