1. Exploring the Nature of Wyoming: Educating the General Public Using Short Videos
Ashley Garrelts; Gene Gade; Milt E. Geiger; Tom Heald; David Keto; Rachel D. Mealor; Dallas E. Mount;
Eric M. Peterson; Justina M. Russell; Brian Sebade; Mae L. Smith; Barton R. Stam; Jennifer S. Thompson
University of Wyoming Extension
133 West Center Street, Douglas WY 82633
ashleyg@uwyo.edu
Abstract:
A team of Extension Educators filmed short video clips titled: Exploring the Nature
of Wyoming. The objective of the videos is to enhance the knowledge of residents
about different aspects of agriculture and natural resources. Topics explored
include history, wildlife, rural living, water, soil, rangelands, and plants. This topic Methods: Results and Impact, cont.
set enables the team to educate people with all types of interests and The Exploring the Nature of Wyoming or ENOW issue team meets periodically
backgrounds. Video clips are shown once a week during a news broadcast for the throughout the year to come up with new video ideas and filming locations. YouTube:
The team has scripted, filmed, produced, and distributed 234 videos. The YouTube channel’s current
KCWY13 news station in Casper, Wyoming and are then uploaded onto YouTube. Topics are decided on based on location of filming, season, clientele interests and views sit at 337,112. This can be calculated into approximately 337,112 minutes or 5,618 hours of
http://www.youtube.com/ENOW2008. The team has scripted, filmed, produced, needs, and funding sources. Locations are chosen based on the availability of an intense, one-on-one educational programming provided to a client who searched out that
and distributed 234 videos. The YouTube channel’s current views sit at 337,112. This educator to serve as host and topics available to film in that location during a educational experience. We gain approximately 7,000-10,000 unique views per month. With 4
can be calculated into approximately 337,112 minutes or 5,618 hours of intense, one- specific season. videos being upload per month that roughly translates into 2,500 unique views per video. Although
on-one educational programming provided to a client who searched out that many of our views are on already uploaded videos . This computes to be approximately 250 hours
of educational programing per month to clients who searched out our information.
educational experience. Estimated viewership of the news program in which a
segment is embedded is 9,000. Since we offer 52 segments per year the actual
audience reached could be as many as 936,000 views per year for a total of 15,600
hours of contact time. Unfortunately, there is no way to know if the viewer tunes
into the segment or treats it like a commercial. Views of this video series have
generated positive feedback from clientele. One viewer wrote: “Just dropping by
to view a few more of your videos! Thank You for your time & effort to show us the
little informative tidbits of the many places & things about Wyoming! Very
enjoyable to watch & learn!—IntoWisOutdoors”.
Raw footage is then edited and produced into a 30-90 second video segment. For
many of our videos on the history of Wyoming, historical photographs are needed.
Introduction These are obtained from the American Heritage Center at the University of
Wyoming. For many of our wildlife videos additional footage or photographs are From comments generated in YouTube we know that our videos are being used to teach youth,
Exploring the Nature of Wyoming is an ongoing project that creates 30-90 second being aired on other state and local news channels, used to gain information for high school and
obtained from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.
informative videos that share wonderful bits of information about Wyoming and its college classwork, and to enhance personal interests.
bounty of natural resources, agriculture, and history. These short, educational
Segments are delivered to KCWY-13 out of Casper, Wyoming once per week and air One viewer wrote: “Just dropping by to view a few more of your videos! Thank You for your time
videos are designed to raise the public's awareness about Wyoming and promote
during one of the weekend news programs. After segments air they are uploaded & effort to show us the little informative tidbits of the many places & things about Wyoming! Very
environmental stewardship. All segments are produced by University of Wyoming
to YouTube where they are categorized into at least one of 13 playlists. Segments enjoyable to watch & learn!—IntoWisOutdoors”.
Extension and the Sustainable Management of Rangeland Resources Initiative
also receive a short description, some key words for searching purposes, and are
Team. A viewer commented: “We have found that your video titled (Red Gulch Dinosaur Track Site)
geo-referenced. Once a week a video from the YouTube channel is featured on a would be effective for the purposes of instruction in this subject. Specifically, we are asking for
Facebook page. These videos are selected based on season, age of video, permission to upload a few minutes of this video to our site so that we can ensure a safe
happenings around the State, and/or holidays or special events. environment for children to view this content.”--Karen Durrie
Target Audience Another viewer wrote: “Great job! thank you! I'm from Serbia but in NY now! Just starting to
discover Powell's expedition and can't stop reading and watching!”--relikvija
Results and Impact
Facebook
Conclusions and Program Continuation
The program has been evaluated to be very effective. We have received multiple positive comments
Selected videos are also featured once per week on a Facebook page. With this method we reach
on all the videos and there is a big push to keep this program active. Furthermore, in each video UW
anywhere from 25-65 unique viewers per post with 1-15 of those viewers being actively engaged in
Extension is identified as a reliable source of information and education on natural resources
the post, meaning that they click on the post to view the video. This translates into 22 minutes of
education. The program also gives visibility to the University of Wyoming and its Extension Service
one-on-one educational programing per week or 20 hours per year, provided to clients that may or
which represent tangible response to advisory input from Extension clientele.
may not even be aware of the traditional Extension Education programs.
The future plans of this endeavor are to keep making and marketing educational video spots to
share with the general public of Wyoming through TV, as well as the larger public of the world,
through the internet. We are also in the process of geo-referencing our videos so that a smartphone
application may be developed that would allow visitors to Wyoming to view videos based on their
location.
It is our hope that these videos will continue to further educate the general population of Wyoming
as well as the United States and the World. We also hope that this endeavor will serve as an
example for other State Extension initiatives looking to reach clients through video and other up-
and-coming technologies.
The targeted audience for the Exploring the Nature of Wyoming videos shown on Special Thanks to Our Sponsors
KCWY-13 out of Casper is the general population of Wyoming. The team likes to
refer to this as the “Johnny Armchair” or “Sofa Jane” audience. We want to reach Television:
the average American who is watching the nightly news on television and teach Estimated viewership of the Wyoming state-wide news program in which our videos are embedded
them a little something about Wyoming. is 9,000. Since we offer 52 segments per year the actual audience reached could be as many as University of Wyoming
936,000 views per year for a total of 15,600 hours of contact time. Unfortunately, there is no way to American Heritage Center
know if the viewer tunes into the segment or treats it like a commercial.
In addition to the TV broadcast, we also publish the video segments to YouTube and
Facebook. This allows us to reach more than just the State of Wyoming. People
from around the world view these videos. Our videos have been viewed on all
continents and in the majority of the countries across the globe. With this venue
our target audience is still the average person, however this person actually seeks
out the educational experience.