North Country Public Radio
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This summer I had the opportunity to work for North Country Public Radio. Based in Canton, NY, in St. Lawrence County, NCPR operates a network of 33 transmitters broadcasting to the entire Adirondack North Country, western Vermont and southeastern Ontario. It hosts a range of programs from NPR and many other public radio stations. They host community events, live shows, story sharing nights and more. It's truly a station for the community.
My main role was helping with their North Country at Work (NCAW) project which is essentially an archive of stories. It includes photographs, oral histories and interviews from people across the North Country about what they do for work. We ask questions that tell us why people have stayed in the North Country and continue to do so; what informs their choices and what are the various challenges and benefits with staying in this region. It's particularly important now as the North Country faces an aging population and growing job insecurity. We have to understand what issues are everyday people facing when it comes to living and surviving in the area. The North Country is filled with opportunity but it can be difficult to seek out and find. This project essentially brings these opportunities to one place for people to further understand what is going on up here.
The newest part of this project is the Next Generation aspect. This is basically a focus on young people through the project. It aims to understand and encourage young people to see what other young people are doing and why they are staying. It's a source of hope and encouragement that it is possible to make it work. It's been a very fruitful experience for me to learn about the North Country through this project. I have been able to visit a range of towns from Champlain to Ticonderoga through this project and see the mindset of people who live here. As an international I also feel as through this part of the US isn't shown or understood so I feel very lucky to have has the chance to not only see but understand the way of life in the North Country.
The NCAW includes travelling across the region and setting up at libraries and museums. People will come in to get their stories heard and we are there to record them! My work during this internship allowed me to interview over 10 people and produce 4 stories that have been aired on the radio and published on the website. I have had the chance to speak to paramedics, entrepreneurs, farmers, artists; from 86 years old to 21 year olds. It has been a truly human experience.
I have learnt how to write for radio and how to narrate with peoples stories. I have been able to learn from radio announcers, journalists, stations managers, engineers and the office dogs. There is no shortage of professionals that I have learnt from in my internship this summer. I have had to unlearn academic jargon for the sake of telling a story in the clearest and most concise way possible and I have had to understand how people absorb stories in their region. I have made mistakes and gotten details wrong but I have fixed them and learnt that I will always continue to learn.
I also had the opportunity to research for grants and write a letter of interest for organisations to hopefully connect with the station and fund various projects. This has taught me a lot about how non profit organisation operate and what resources they rely on.
Overall, this internship has brought me closer to the community in a region I am otherwise unfamiliar with. It has helped me to understand the struggles and how people overcome them. I have learnt plenty of practical skills but more than anything I have developed my people skills and learnt even more how much I enjoy connection and community.