Galen Koch is an audio producer, educator, and oral historian based in Portland, Maine. After studying at the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies in 2014, Galen worked as a freelance journalist. She has written and produced stories for BBC World Service, NPR’s Morning Edition, The New York Times, and various nationally-syndicated podcasts. As an oral historian, Galen has worked on life history interview projects for the Smithsonian (a collection of interviews from adults living with Hemophilia), Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and, in 2017, she founded the community storytelling project The First Coast and began documenting the lives of coastal Mainers.

As part of her work with The First Coast, Galen teaches radio storytelling at the College of the Atlantic and produces the Island Institute’s podcast “From the Sea Up” and she creates audio exhibits and immersive sound installations in rural Maine fishing towns. In 2021, Galen founded Maine Sound & Story, an online database of Maine oral histories and stories. To date, Galen has created community exhibits in Lubec, Jonesport, and Beals. She has interviewed over 200 coastal Maine residents for Maine Sound & Story, and has worked with local historical societies and community development organizations to create meaningful exhibits for coastal residents.