Show and Tell: We Want Your Videos!
Call for content! We want to see your videos and photos from your recent adventures on public lands. Why do you love public lands? What inspires you to get outside? Submit your video for a chance to be featured on our social media channel and receive a public lands sticker. Submission guidelines and suggestions are below.
Submission Guidelines and Suggestions
We’re always looking for ways to celebrate our incredible public lands so we’ve decided to kick off a social media campaign highlighting some of these places. We need your help! We’re calling them Postcards from Public Lands and we’d like to feature your short video on our Instagram and Facebook channels.
When you’re out exploring a national, state, or local park, historic site, wildlife refuge, forest, BLM land or other public land or waterway, take a moment and shoot a short, 30 second video talking about why you cherish that landscape. It doesn’t need to be elaborate—it just needs to convey something special about the place you’re visiting.
Tips for shooting the video
- Please shoot it vertically
- Have someone else hold your phone if possible
- The phone should be within 10 feet for good audio and be sheltered from the wind
- Try to stand in good, even lighting
- Speak with energy and enthusiasm!
Suggestions for Your Public Lands Postcard
It should be easy and fun to do. Here are a few ideas about what to say, but remember to keep it to 30 seconds or less:
- Why this place is special to you
- How this place makes you feel
- Fun fact about this place
- Cool wildlife or plant life that you’ve seen
- Why you wanted to share this place with your kids/spouse/friend
- A particular conservation need at this place
- Mental health benefits from your adventure
- Why public lands matter to you
If possible, send a few still photos of the place that we can edit into your video. Alternatively, if you took a great trip this year but didn’t shoot a video, record a 30 second audio clip about the place and then email us a dozen photos we can use to cover your audio track.
Please send your materials to ourpubliclands@nwf.org (or write to us if you have questions). In return, we’ll mail you a cool “Public Lands Lover” sticker for your water bottle.
Want some examples? Here’s one that was shot at the Garden of the Gods in Colorado, or this one from Rocky Mountain National Park.
Why Public Lands Matter
Most people think of national parks when they think of public lands—and those certainly contain some of the most spectacular landscapes in the nation. But public lands include national and state forests, wildlife refuges, state and local parks, recreation areas, national conservation areas and monuments, wilderness areas, wild and scenic rivers and so much more. (For a concise description of some of these national areas, check out this summary from the Department of the Interior).
Connecting with Nature
Visiting our nation’s public lands can be a terrific way to connect with nature. Thousands of species of wildlife and fish live in these very diverse areas, including polar bears in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, desert bighorn sheep in Joshua Tree National Park, sperm whales in the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, and more than 245 species of birds at the Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge.
Endless Opportunities for Recreation
In addition to wildlife watching, these areas offer so many opportunities for outdoor recreation, including camping, hiking, cycling, rafting, skiing, paddling, horseback riding, hunting, and fishing. Whew! The options are endless.
All of us on the Public Lands Team at National Wildlife Federation try to spend every spare minute exploring these vast landscapes and we want to encourage others to do so, too. We look forward to seeing the amazing places you’ve explored!
Source: Public Lands
Originally Posted on NWF.org