NREL Campus Connections Newsletter Publication

Campus Connections, a twice-yearly product from NREL’s Communications Office spotlighting the people, resources, and benefits behind NREL’s important research. Director Martin Keller first came up with the idea of an internal print publication after attending a panel on the importance of print media. Seeing an opportunity to engage staff in a new, physical form, the Communications Office set out to build Campus Connections from scratch. “We look at our screens all day, and sometimes it’s just nice to have a quiet moment somewhere on our beautiful campus and leaf through something tangible,” Martin wrote in the first issue. “You can carry this around, peruse it at your leisure, and then, when you’re done, maybe pass it along to colleagues, friends, or family with an article recommendation. It’s a simple and easy way to help spread the word.” While Campus Connections was informed by past internal print publications, the Director of Communications set out to craft a new type of employee conversation. Each issue will focus on a fresh theme, from health and safety to getting connected. Even though NREL encourages minimal physical printed pieces in order to be conscious of our paper usage and carbon footprint, the director values the tactility of a printed piece that you can hold in your hands. With a "Print is Not Dead!" mentality and a strategic, thoughtful approach, our communications team thought about how we could bring the lab together in a post COVID workplace where a lot of the staff begins returning to office and fostering a community atmosphere again. We created a new, internal newsletter, to help keep staff informed, engaged, and hopeful for all the work NREL is doing and will do in the future. Feeling more like a blog than a magazine, or newspaper, the printed piece needed to be short and concise, with no binding, engaging and portable.