Other Internship Opportunities

Green Guide Coordinator

Carolina Dining Services (CDS) is seeking a student who is passionate about waste diversion to lead our Green Guide Program! Green Guides are student volunteers that help people sort their waste between compost, recycling, and landfill at the waste stations in Lenoir Mainstreet & Beach Cafe. This program originally began as a part of Eat Sort Win, our award-winning composting and recycling education campaign. We now host shifts biweekly throughout the academic year!

CDS is proud to offer front-of-house compost and recycling bins in Lenoir Mainstreet, Beach Cafe, and Chase Hall. Unfortunately, however, they tend to have high contamination rates, meaning a large percentage of items are sorted into the incorrect waste stream (i.e. a plastic bottle in the compost). This can cause recyclable or compostable materials to end up in landfills, malfunctions with recycling equipment, or the introduction of plastics and chemicals into soil systems. Therefore, these bins require ongoing consumer education. This is why our Green Guide program is so important, as it allows for direct communication with each individual guest, empowering and encouraging them to pass along what they learned to other people.

Project Location: Hybrid

Project Level: Entry Level

Fork to Farm Intern

The Carrboro Vermicomposting Project was initiated by a group of neighbors and funded by the town of Carrboro, to decrease methane released by kitchen scraps in our landfill. We promote vermicomposting and bokashi, and offer educational and training workshops. Our long-term goal is forming an organization that will keep the program improving and expanding after the grant period. This organization will provide introductory workshops, training, support, networking, continuing education, and on-line access to trusted resources.

Our Fork to Farm initiative extends our project by making composting kitchen scraps available to more people. We heard from many interested people who struggle to find the motivation and space to start vermicomposting. Therefore, we are adding the Bokashi method. Bokashi is a way to stabilize kitchen scraps in 5-gallon buckets for later use by fermenting. It can be used in the individual's garden or, donated to a friend, community garden or farmer. It requires even less labor and space, making it accessible to more people.

Tasks would include:

1. Improve and maintain our mailing list, design brochures, fliers and displays, website design and maintenance, help write publicity articles and grant proposals and post fliers
2. Tabling at the Carrboro Farmers Market, Carrboro Open Streets, Earth Day Events, Carrboro Music Festival, Carrboro in Motion and the UNC Climate Action Day and others. Will involve time spent on the weekends.
3. Continue outreach and program coordination efforts with student groups on the UNC campus including the Climate Crisis Committee, CompostMates, Edible Campus, Carolina Community Garden and Epsilon Eta.
4. Harvest vermicompost and maintain vermiculture bins. Assemble new vermicomposting bins and bokashi buckets

Project Location: Orange County, primarily Carrboro and Chapel Hill

Project Level: Entry Level

DPS Hub Farm Environmental Education and Agriculture Assistant

This fall EcoStudio intern will assist a lean staff of 3, an AmeriCorps service member, and volunteers in the sustainable operation of the DPS Hub Farm and property, including helping care for livestock and working in the garden and landscaping. This intern may also help facilitate environmental education field trips and activities for students aged K-12, and for this reason, the intern would ideally be available on 2-3 weekdays from 8am-12pm. The intern will have the opportunity to attend meetings with staff, and might engage in networking with community partners or participate in some professional development activities. Finally, the intern will complete an independent project of their choice.

Project Location: Durham

Project Level: Entry Level

Environmental Education Coordinator

Friends of Lower Haw River is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the Lower Haw River State Natural Area (LOHA) and the Chatham County segment of the Haw River State Trail (HRST), both part of the NC State Parks system.  We provide stewardship, education, and advocacy by:

• enhancing infrastructure and restoring habitat
• offering educational programs to connect people with nature
• promoting public awareness of the Lower Haw ecosystem
• encouraging land conservation along the river corridor
• establishing and maintaining sustainable land and paddle trails

We are seeking a student interested in planning, organizing, and conducting environmental education activities for our organization.  Responsibilities may include developing environmental education materials such as videos, guides, brochures, handouts; developing  programs such as field outings and presentations; recruiting program leaders or being the program leader; scheduling program offerings; handling program registrations; and coordinating on-site activities. Activities may occur on some weeknights and weekends.

Project Location: Hybrid: virtual and in-person at Haw River between Chapel Hill and Pittsboro

Project Level: Entry Level

Campus to Camps Intern

Are you passionate about sustainability and looking to make a real impact? Join the Campus to Camps internship program! This unique opportunity pairs university student groups with local camps to help them achieve the Green Camps Certification. You'll gain hands-on experience in sustainability practices, outreach, and project management, all while working remotely with the possibility of visiting a camp if one is nearby. Throughout the internship, you’ll be mentored by Danny Sudman, the Executive Director of Green Camps.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Green Camps Certification Support (40 hours):

• Assist a designated camp in completing the Green Camps Certification program.
• Dive into Green Camps' approach to sustainability and learn what it takes to get certified.
• Understand the camp industry's unique needs, challenges, and opportunities for going green.
• Collaborate with camp staff to gather necessary documentation, implement sustainable practices, and ensure all certification criteria are met.

2. Outreach and Communications (Remaining hours):

• Reach out to other camps, share success stories, and offer one-on-one consulting support.
• Advocate for the use of Green Camps resources, encouraging more camps to pursue certification.
• Create and execute a communications plan to share your journey and the impact of your work, including: Writing engaging social media posts, blogs, and articles; Presenting at webinars and other camp-related events to share insights and experiences.

• Work with Green Camps staff to come up with creative strategies to promote sustainability in camps.

Project Location: Remote, with potential for on-site camp visits if a camp is close to you.

Project Level: Advanced

Communications Internship

Sustainable Carolina seeks a creative, innovative communicator to support our social media efforts, specifically on Instagram. This is a paid ($2500 stipend with half paid at start of the semester and half paid half-way through the semester), semester long position, reporting to the communications specialist at Sustainable Carolina. There is the possibility of extending the internship through spring 2025.

Sustainable Carolina is housed within the UNC Institute for the Environment and is the hub for campus sustainability. The University’s Climate Action Plan, Water Plan and Annual Sustainability Report are three major pillars of our communications strategy. It’s our priority to connect with students, faculty and staff to share the content within these documents.

We also aim to share Carolina's sustainability stories, emphasizing work being carried out across campus units. These stories may involve student organizations, courses with a sustainability component, events happening on campus and more. 

Responsibilities

• Learn about and apply Sustainable Carolina’s branding strategy.
• Analyze social media efforts and offer ideas for improvement.
• Attend biweekly communications strategy meeting and brainstorming session with communications team.
• Work with Sustainable Carolina’s content calendar to create and share original content (static posts, reels, carosels, stories) on a regular basis (3x/week).
• Attend sustainability events (when it fits the students’ schedule) to aid in content creation.
• Create 3 long form (videos, blog posts) pieces during the semester and create social posts around this content.
• Track engagement with content and compile in a monthly report.

Qualifications

• Experience or understanding of how to use Instagram to connect with audiences.
• Experience using Adobe products like Adobe Express, InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop is a plus.
• Ability to frame messages to create engaging, educational and entertaining social media content.
• Excellent oral communication, writing, and research skills.
• Excitement to connect with people on campus to share their sustainability stories.
• Organizational skills required to manage a content calendar and keep other communications team members in the loop.  
  

Project Location: Hybrid - Chapel Hill, NC

Project Level: Entry Level

Heat Mapping Internship

Sustainable Carolina seeks an intern to continue our work in heat mapping UNC’s campus. This is a paid ($2500 stipend with half paid at start of the semester and half paid half-way through the semester), semester long position, with an opportunity to continue into spring semester, based on performance and the student's interest. 

Sustainable Carolina is housed within the UNC Institute for the Environment and is the hub for campus sustainability. The University’s Climate Action Plan, Water Plan and Annual Sustainability Report are three major pillars of our communications strategy. It’s our priority to connect with students, faculty and staff to share the content within these documents.

We also aim to support University operations through sustainability research. Through the mapping of temperature in high-traffic areas, UNC Facilities can design new campus structures in such a way that protects campus users from extreme heat.

Responsibilities

• Create a route schedule for measuring temperatures in high-priority areas at different times of day.
• Carry a temperature sensor around the routes and log measurements. This requires traversing routes at a walking pace, therefore the student cannot acquire accurate measurements by driving, biking, or any other faster-paced form of transportation.
• Store data in an organized fashion. 
  

Project Location: Hybrid/Chapel Hill

Project Level: Entry Level

Design Your Own Sustainability Internship

Sustainable Carolina seeks an intern with their own idea for a sustainability internship. The idea can involve any area(s) of sustainability. The student is responsible for submitting their idea within our online application. Once the intern is selected, the Sustainable Carolina team will work with the student to refine their project idea and create a schedule.

This is a paid ($2500 stipend with half paid at start of the semester and half paid half-way through the semester), semester long position, with an opportunity to continue into spring semester, based on performance and the student’s interest. 

Sustainable Carolina is housed within the UNC Institute for the Environment and is the hub for campus sustainability. The University’s Climate Action Plan, Water Plan and Annual Sustainability Report are three major pillars of our communications strategy. It’s our priority to connect with students, faculty and staff to share the content within these documents.

We also aim to support University operations through sustainability research. This Design Your Own Internship allows the student to identify and research a specific area of sustainability and create deliverables based on that work.  

Responsibilities

• Create a project proposal (to be submitted in our online application).
• Meet with Sustainable Carolina team to refine proposal and create a schedule for completing the project in one semester.
• Identify faculty and staff at the University that can assist in your project if needed.
• Provide deliverables to Sustainable Carolina at conclusion of the project.
• Identify ways deliverables can be shared with the campus community and beyond. 
  

Project Location: Hybrid - Chapel Hill

Project Level: Entry Level

Storytelling Production

This internship is a creative storytelling project that requires the student to have knowledge of video editing and design. The Nature Conservancy was part of a groundbreaking partnership with Fort Liberty, formerly Fort Brag, to save Red-cockaded woodpeckers in the Sandhills region in NC. There were many key actors in this partnership, and we recorded interviews with them that the intern and I will review and start editing. The intern will also be able to practice filming interviews and natural sceneries at our TNC preserves. 

A key part of the internship will be creating a storyboard and editing the material so that we can honor the history, the people, and the importance of this partnership and inspire the audience. This internship will be full of creativity, inspiring stories from conservationists, and a connection with nature.

Project Location: Durham

Project Level: Advanced