Meet Jade Hello, LOE listeners! My name is Jade, and I'm one of LOE's interns this fall! I’m big into storytelling and care deeply about our environment. So of course, getting the chance to immerse myself in the inner workings of a nonprofit organization focused on sharing environmental news through audio storytelling was an opportunity I couldn’t say no to. A little bit about me: I'm a recent graduate from Bryn Mawr College, right outside Philadelphia, where I majored in creative writing and minored in psychology and gender/sexuality studies. As a liberal arts gal, I chose writing as my medium of choice because the topics to explore are endless. I’m often found roaming the interdisciplinary forests hoping to find hidden connections. In this next season of my career journey, I’m moving into the world of environmental exploration, whether it pertains to science, politics, or culture. Of course, our environment and our social experiences heavily overlap — those are the stories I can’t wait to unearth! There’s a ton of captivating research out there, but sometimes it’s hard to decipher what it really means in the context of our everyday lives. That’s where things get fun — by intertwining scientific voices with the language of everyday life, we create digestible, captivating stories that both inform and intrigue. Although I thought prose and poetry were the only forms of writing I’d encountered during my undergrad, I ended up taking a course on writing for radio and podcasts in which a new love for media writing, production, and investigation bloomed. My professor brought in a bunch of media experts, and I finally saw what a career in the writing world could manifest into — yes, I could still delve into literature through an academic lens and write short stories, but I didn’t need to make it my career. The question “what should I pursue after college?” had less hazy answers after taking the media writing course. I finally could see myself outside of college, working in public radio, and helping produce a plethora of stories. One of my favorite aspects of the production process is pulling together tape from interviews and transforming it into something digestible, informative, and engaging. I’ve always considered myself to be very visual — so why does audio have such a sparkle in my view? Well, despite the fact that your eyes can be closed while consuming a podcast, it’s indeed a very visual format! Like a book, you have the pleasure of creating your own imagery which makes listening that much more personal. I’m so excited to continue my storytelling journey with LOE this fall! LOE’s program is built to allow us interns to really sink our teeth into the full production process, and I look forward to what’s to come. Cheers!
Jade Poli
