Environmental Podcast Production
Help shape the way we talk about and understand ecological crisis by assisting in the production of an environmental podcast and multimedia project.
Project description
Chrysalis is an environmental podcast, hosted by UB professor John Fiege, that explores questions of transformation in the face of global ecological crisis. The Environmental Podcast Production project provides a funded one-year opportunity for an undergraduate student to assist Prof. John Fiege in transforming Chrysalis for the current cultural moment. Over the past couple of years, the cultural and political climate in the United States and elsewhere has changed drastically, including a major shift in governmental and corporate actions to address climate change and environmental protection. In 2026, we will be reworking and relaunching the podcast along with a more extensive multimedia component of the project. The student researcher will be a member of the podcast team, which includes Prof. Fiege and various freelance professionals outside of UB. We will first conduct research on current high priority environmental concerns. Second, we will investigate the latest research on effective strategies for communicating to a wide public audience and building a robust podcast audience. Third, we will be doing audio and video editing, graphic design, website development, and social media asset creation related to the podcast. Fourth, we will test the performance of both our primary media content and the secondary website and social media assets we create to publicize the primary content. Lastly, we hope to attend Climate Week in New York City (September, 2026), the largest climate event in the world, in order to research the latest environmental ideas, leaders, and media strategies.
Project outcome
Students will acquire extensive experience in researching and communicating environmental ideas and the process of producing and distributing a podcast and related materials—from research, to writing, design, distribution, marketing, and communication with an audience. Through weekly meetings with the podcast team, students will further develop their research, critical thinking, and verbal communication skills, while improving their ability to work effectively in a group, meet deadlines, and be accountable to their colleagues. Students will also develop a variety of creative stills, including audio and video editing, graphic design, website development, and social media asset creation and strategy, in addition to developing competency with a range of web and social media platforms and design and editing software programs, including Adobe Creative Cloud and DaVinci Resolve. The project will include many tangible student outcomes, including edited podcast episodes, redesigned websites, and social media content.
Project details
| Length of commitment | Year-long |
| Start time | Spring |
| In-person, remote, or hybrid? | Hybrid |
| Level of collaboration | Individual student project |
| Benefits | Stipend |
| Who is eligible | All undergraduate students with strong written and verbal communication skills, the ability to work effectively in groups, a strong interest in environmental studies, and a willingness to learn new skills and explore new ideas. |
Core partners
- Editors, designers, and audio mixers on the podcast team.
- https://www.chrysalispodcast.org/
Project mentor
John Fiege
Assistant Professor
Media Study
Email: jfiege@buffalo.edu
Start the project
- Email the project mentor using the contact information above to express your interest and get approval to work on the project. (Here are helpful tips on how to contact a project mentor.)
- After you receive approval from the mentor to start this project, click the button to start the digital badge. (Learn more about ELN's digital badge options.)
Preparation activities
Once you begin the digital badge series, you will have access to all the necessary activities and instructions. Your mentor has indicated they would like you to also complete the specific preparation activities below. Please reference this when you get to Step 2 of the Preparation Phase.
Read articles on the state of environmentalism:
- https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/22/climate/trump-environmental-policy-week.html
- https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/04/on-earth-day-we-finally-have-a-president-who-follows-science/
- https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/22/shell-shocked-green-movement-searches-for-how-to-counter-trump-00574026
- https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/05/magazine/climate-change-activism-renewable-energy.html
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10623769/
- https://iucn.org/resources/issues-brief/benefits-and-risks-rewilding
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590332220306047
- https://rewildingeurope.com/blog/the-un-decade-why-we-need-rewilding/
Read articles on the latest trends in podcasts, newsletters, and related social media promotion:
- https://growthinreverse.com/heather-cox-richardson/
- https://growthinreverse.com/interesting-newsletter-growth-strategies/
- https://growthinreverse.com/emily-atkin/
- https://growthinreverse.com/kyla-scanlon/
- https://writingcooperative.com/10-things-that-helped-maria-popova-build-a-multi-million-blog-audience-66157fc56487
- https://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/02/fashion/maria-popova-has-some-big-ideas.html
- https://tim.blog/2015/07/24/maria-popova-starting-a-successful-blog/
Watch the two DaVinci Resolve “Introduction to Editing” videos:
Keywords
media, media study, art, film, photography, podcast, audio, graphic design, web design, environment, ecology, history