Hey there! I’m Briana Flin (she/her) and I’m the newly-minted Content Producer/Strategist for the Water Hub team.
Where do you call home?
I’m a NorCal gal. I was born in Oakland, raised in the small college town of Davis and twice-educated at UC Berkeley (undergrad and grad school – Go Bears!). Today, I call the lovely hills of El Cerrito home.
What brought you to this work and why does water matter to you?
In my previous work as a video journalist, I always aimed to amplify marginalized voices, speak truth to power, and shed light on the issues that matter most to everyday people, all in an accessible, creative and visual way.
Those are still my aims as I join the Water Hub. I’m excited to help ramp up our team’s visual storytelling efforts and I’m particularly excited to do so in the service of something as vital as water.
Much of my past work has touched on the issue of water. I’ve made short documentaries on coastal restoration on the Gulf Coast, sanitation issues in upstate New York, water shortages along the California-Oregon border, flooding in historic Black communities in Louisiana, and natural gas-related plastic pollution in Texas waterways, among others. I’ve also animated videos to help explain why America still struggles with issues like sanitation and lead poisoning.
Water matters to me because of what I’ve learned from these stories––and the people generous enough to share them with me.
What would the world be better with more of?
Media literacy is something I can’t seem to stop thinking about. Call me an idealist, but if we were all more critical media consumers and creators, I think misinformation would be less rampant, discourse would be more fruitful and we’d have a richer understanding of the world around us. Maybe even a stronger democracy, who knows?
I also want to steal my colleague, Zakiyaa’s answer of silliness because it’s very very true! I mean, who wants to be serious all the time when you can be a goofball?
What did you do before you came to the Water Hub?
I worked as a video journalist for a small nonprofit newsroom focused on the human impact of climate change. I produced short documentaries and explainer videos on environmental justice and climate topics in partnership with outlets like The Guardian and PBS.
Prior to that, I was a video producer at WIRED Magazine. I made YouTube videos about science and culture topics––everything from kinetic sculptures to debunking Covid myths (early pandemic days) to praying mantises wearing 3D glasses. It was a fun time!
Where’s your happy place?
Anywhere with good food or cute animals or beautiful art or a stunning natural landscape.
What’s the best advice you were ever given? Who was it from?
Honestly, what comes to mind is my Dad quoting Yoda, “Do or do not. There is no try,” i.e. never approach a challenge with the mindset that you will fail.
We’d never guess that you…?
Never grew up with dogs.
When I was a kid, our family had cats. And while some childhood friends had dogs, they were never a part of our household. It wasn’t until I lived with some friends who had a very sweet boy named Wilbur that I became the dog obsessive I now am. (He was my gateway dog!)
Now, I say hi to every dog I see and have a giant, rambunctious rescue dog named Dewey. He’s a good boy.
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