Something to think about

I’m leaving San Diego in 2 days and to be completely honest, I haven’t been devoting much time to PR.  In the past 72 hours, I went to the Japanese Friendship Garden at Balboa Park, ate Ethiopian food, surfed, did oyster shooters while overlooking the Ocean Beach pier, fought LA traffic, spent a day at Six Flags, and am getting ready to do some yoga and enjoy a beach day, some drinks, and a hot hot California roll at Sushi Deli downtown.

Today’s Sugar:  While I enjoy some last rays of California sun, I am thinking about all my friends and family on the East Coast who are preparing for Hurricane Irene to hit.  It also forces me to think about the PR practitioner’s part in managing an emergency situation.  Specifically, I’m watching the way in which Boston University’s communications department (COM) is responding to the situation.  So far, there is an official twitter hashtag (#BUIrene).  Although I don’t think I have any official emails from BU regarding the hurricane (I may not have set up my email forwarding correctly), I did receive an email from BU after the Virginia Earthquake titled “BU Emergency Alert” with a 5-sentence statement signed by the BU Police Department.  Below is the content of that email:

“To the Boston University Community:
Within the last hour, the Boston metropolitan area experienced the effects of a 5.9 magnitude earthquake centered in Virginia that occurred at 1:51 PM. Many people in the Boston area, and on campus, have reported tremors resulting from this event. Please be advised that there are no reported injuries or damage to buildings on the Boston University Charles River or Medical Center campuses. There is no need to evacuate any buildings. You will be notified promptly if this information changes.
Boston University Police Department”

I am about to go back out into the sun and to dip my toes in the Pacific Ocean but I will be thinking about the ways in which we as PR practitioners can effectively communicate to our key populations during moments of crisis.

Welcome to Public Relations Sugar.

Dear Readers,

Welcome to PR Sugar – a blog for public relations tips, insights, musings and inspiration.  My goal is to give readers a daily dose of sugar – a takeaway about the public relations field.  My name is Julia and I am leaving Southern California for Boston University where I will over the course of a year receive an M.S. degree in public relations.  This blog will serve as a way to synthesize all the information I’m gleaning throughout this year of PR discovery.  I am guessing that yoga, food, fashion and social events might crop up at some point too.

Today’s Sugar:  Be a Joiner!  When I first moved to Southern California, I didn’t know a single local.  I was both excited and daunted by the task of acquiring an entirely new social life.  One of the first groups I joined was the San Diego chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA).  As I now prepare to leave San Diego two years later, I have acquired some leadership and career skills for my resume, as well as the friendship of five successful public relations practitioners, the strong and savvy women who served alongside me on the New Pros committee.  So go out there and join a group that shares your passion – you never know who you might meet!