Erika Pirozok

UW Marine Biology alum and a big fan of kelp!
Currently working for @chb_tacoma as the Community Education and Bay Patrol Intern.

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

anyone have tips for affording grad school abroad (specifically australia)? finding it hard to see scholarships and grants that relate to me 😢

[Communities for a Healthy Bay @chb_tacoma]

Ocean heroes, unite! 🌊 #OrcaActionMonth is here. Join us THIS Friday from 2-5 to dive deep into Orca knowledge, snag some fin-tastic giveaways, and mark storm drains for our endangered pals? Let's make a splash for our Southern Resident friends. 🐳 https://t.co/m33KpSrHcS

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Her: he's probably thinking about other girls.

Him: the average human consumes up to 70,000 microplastic particles annually, with 92% of the ocean's surface plastic pollution being microplastics.

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

undergrad research symposium = success

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

🚨ALERT🚨
The Undergrad Research Symposium is TOMORROW!!

come check out all the cool projects and maybe stop by the #kelpcrew poster at 3:45-5:30 😎

(it’s at mgh ;))

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

ICYMI: Main Points from Wednesday's Seminar
- Know what your audience wants --> this can help you write an engaging presentation
- The story you think you are going to tell may not be the story you should tell --> accommodate new info as it comes
#EnviroComm23

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

That's it for this seminar! Thanks again to @Weinbergrrrrr for having an awesome chat with us today! #EnviroComm23

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Journalists Scientists
🤝
are just people too
#benice #EnviroComm23

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Q: How can we improve our writing skills?
A: "Build time into your schedule"
Read your story out loud and you can see what's missing, if you have too much jargon, or if it sounds weird. #dontbeadouchebag #EnviroComm23

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

#EnviroComm23
She later applied to "probably 90" other places, but eventually got to work on sustainability at NPR, then went on to work for wirecutter and PBS! #justkeepapplying!

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

#EnviroComm23
Q: How did you get into journalism and your job at @Crosscut
A: Do you want the long version or the short version?

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Starting out with a degree in Mandarin Chinese, @Weinbergrrrrr took a class where she discovered "you can ask people questions as a job". She ended up chatting with a CNN pres who took a risk on her and let her internship in the features section of the paper!

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Sometimes you need to take risks, but it's important to understand what your audience wants and needs. @Weinbergrrrrr :"We aren't just sitting watching a data stream coming in about bears, so tomorrow we have to write about bears"

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

#EnviroComm23
Q: How do you decide what has to get on the news?
A: There are a lot of factors to decide when, if, and what stories should take priority.

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Seattle turns out to no longer be the least air-conditioned city in the nation! This has now become a solutions story that needs a loooot more research than anticipated! #EnviroComm23 #coolasacucumber

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Case Study #2
"Even the best-laid plans can get waylaid"
The goal: update story on air conditioning equity - easy, simple, nothing fancy
The result: new significant information published that really got people thinking about future problems #EnviroComm23

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Case Study #2
"Even the best-laid plans can get waylaid"
The goal: update story on air conditioning equity - easy, simple, nothing fancy
The result: new significant information published that really got people thinking about future problems #EnviroComm23

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

In this case, @Weinbergrrrrr describes she needs to give the audience an overview of the systems. How much do people know about volcanoes? How will they know a volcano will erupt? "It's a story about how a lack of knowledge can make us panic unnecessarily" #EnviroComm23

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Turns out it was just a cloud! This is why it is important to understand what is actually happening before reporting. #notadisaster #happycloud #EnviroComm23

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

Case study #1: Reactive Reporting
Mt. Rainier could be erupting?
Hannah's editor: "Start reporting now"
She needed to figure out the context or to be helpful if this wasn't a disaster.

[Erika Pirozok @ScientificErika]

For example, she told us about a study describing why parasites are disappearing and why that's bad. She worked with parasitologists to find out that 1) this thing happened and 2) why did it happen? #EnviroComm23