Michelle has spent years honing her short-form video storytelling skills through reading, research, practice, experimentation, and collaborations with some of California’s most successful nature creators. Her videos have now reached millions of people around the world.
In this course, Michelle distills everything she’s learned into nine clear, practical units designed for people working in nature-focused organizations. Whether you’re trying to raise awareness, inspire action, or grow your community, this course will help you use social media more effectively—without adding stress to your already-full plate.
By the end of the course, participants will:
- Understand how social platforms work and what they prioritize
- Build a basic strategy aligned with their organization’s mission
- Learn each step of creating an engaging short-form video
- Create one ready-to-publish video
- Walk away with tools to keep creating great content
This is the course Michelle wishes she’d had when she was starting out—designed especially for those telling the story of the natural world.
Requirements:
- You must work for a conservation focused land trust based in California in order to sign up.
- Complete the self-paced course, which consists of 9 concise units designed to help you master the basics of short-form video creation for social media. Note: the course is expected to take 6-8 hours for participants to complete all 9 units.
- Create one video (the course will take you step-by-step through this process)
- Attend 4 live sessions (one per month, starting in September) with a group of employees from land trusts across California
Live Sessions
Live sessions will be held at 10:00 am on the following dates (please note session topics and units to complete PRIOR to live sessions):
- Friday, September 12 (strategy and planning–complete through unit 4)
- Friday, October 10 (recording and editing–complete through unit 6)
- Friday, November 14 (publishing, reflecting, and iterating–complete through unit 8)
- Friday, December 12 (Guest speaker and time for questions–complete entire self-paced course)
Zoom links for live sessions will be provided to participants after sign-up.
Cost
$25 per participant. Limit one participant per land trust unless there is extra room after the initial signup period.
Max Participants
Please note that this class has a max capacity of 30 participants. Only one person per land trust will be approved to participate.
How to apply
Please complete the application form below. Note: Priority Deadline for Consideration: July 18, 2025
Once complete, CCLT will review your application. If you have been approved to enroll, CCLT will share specific directions on how to access and pay the $25 fee for the self-paced course.