Thank you for your interest in writing a “Postcard” about your local government engagement experience! One of the things we’ve learned through our outreach to engineers and scientists who wish to become more involved with their local government is that the first step can be the hardest. Where do you begin looking for more information and avenues for participation? What is it really like to attend a City Council meeting or read through a State budget? By sharing your experience, you will help demystify approaching local government for other engineers and scientists. You will also help them understand what to expect when coming from our shared approach to the world through science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).
The purpose of these Postcards, or short blog posts, is to share your experience of engaging in a new way with your local government to help other scientists and engineers know what to expect.
The general audience for these posts will be professionals with backgrounds in STEM-fields. The language should be broadly accessible.
Postcards should be short (~400 words) and written in question-and-answer format. Please write about your experience even if the engagement was not directly STEM-related. This perspective is especially valuable, as local engagement on STEM-related issues often involves forging relationships and common cause with groups outside the STEM community.
Check out our Local Engagement Playbook for engagement activity ideas.
Please send your draft to postcards@esal.us. In your email, please include a photo of yourself and a suggested banner image for your post, including photo credits. If you are on LinkedIn or Twitter, please send us your profile page and handle so that we can tag you in our social media promotion of your postcard.
If you are recounting a personal conversation or other meeting not in public record, make sure those who you mention or quote are aware of your postcard and comfortable with what you share.
