Jenny Pluhar, 2014 SRM President

We at SRM are often masters of "preaching to the choir." And not at all good at tooting our own horn! EVP Peterson, our staff and I are hoping to change that, at least somewhat. You will notice more references to our Facebook page and Twitter feed in official publications and may even be directed there via a link to view information you are interested in. Don't panic! You do not have to have a Twitter account to view SRM's activity and links there! 

We have a web page, obviously. That unfortunately does not get many "hits." Or not near as many as I would like! Even our own members have to be goaded into using it for committee minutes, member directory, general information! 

Media like Twitter and Facebook have an immense audience. More than most of can ever imagine with a reach broader than we can fathom. Facebook today has 1.23 billion users. Twitter trails with a paltry 500 million! Millions. Billions. We have cautiously dipped our collective big toe in the social media waters and I feel it is time to dive in. For starters, I have asked the OCW committee to prepare some guidelines for SRM social media use. Like for a committee to have a Facebook page. The International Affairs Committee has launched its own Facebook page earlier this week - the perfect group to try out a Facebook page and I hope they add a Twitter feed too. Imagine the global reach! 

FYI - A Twitter post from May 8th was very exciting- a debate in the Boston Globe involving cattle grazing, soil health and climate change. Hat's off to SRM's David Briske for his contribution to the article. Click here to read the article.  

Using social media takes effort and coordination to draw people in. We see impacts already with our tenuous attempts. Allen Press told us in Orlando that the weekly "announcement" that appears on our Facebook page highlighting an article in REM results in an immediate bump in downloads and views of that article!

I want to send big kudos to SRM member Stephen Diess for his Facebook presence. Stephen is a Rangeland Management Specialist with the Coastal Prairies Coalition of GLCI here in Texas. Stephen started out posting the occasional range pic or two, often bragging about his "office view for the day," etc. He has 327 facebook friends (I am sure he has more in real life, but 327 folks have access to his Facebook account!) He started getting comments. Then he started posting more. He might post a pic of a prescribed burn with a bit of an explanation. Folks comment. Folks who know NOTHING about rangeland stewardship. A week or two later, he will post a pic of the green grass regrowing following the fire. More comments. Even a few "shares." People think it is cool. When they "share," it goes to everyone on their friend list. Maybe they live in town and learned something as simple as the fact that the smoke out south was a good thing last week!

So, fellow SRM members, I am betting even many of you in the business of educating and technology transfer did not reach and teach as many people as Stephen did last week. And it took him mere moments. One of my goals is for SRM to become much more visible, through various social media, press releases, even television. Recent SRM press releases have had my phone ringing. If we want people to know who we are and what we stand for......sound rangeland stewardship........we gotta get out there. 

When you are directed to a link on Twitter in a RangeFlash.....click on it! Change the word "friend" from merely a noun in your vocabulary to a verb as well! Saddle up and join me in the virtual world and let's get the word out about SRM!

• Spreading the Word - Jenny Pluhar, 2014 SRM President
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• Upcoming Events
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Contact Windy Kelley for more information

18th Biennial Conference of the Australian Rangeland Society

International Rangeland Congress - IRC 2016
July 17-22, 2016
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
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