Sustainability
Summer Experiences in Sustainability
This semester, the Career Center and the Environmental Thought & Practice program held an event highlighting the summer experiences current ETP students have engaged in. Hear from current 4th year Sophie (double major in Environmental Thought & Practice and Environmental Science) and current 4th year Katie (Environmental Thought & Practice major) about their summer experiences and advice for students looking for similar opportunities!
Where was your summer experience and what did you do?
Sophie: During the summer of 2023, I had an internship with Serco, a government contracting company in Herndon, VA. I was interning for their ESG (Environmental Social Governance) department, where I worked on writing their company's facility sustainability policy, assisted in REC (Renewable Energy Credits) purchasing, reached out to environmental non-profits in the North American region to inquiry on a Serco partnership of some sort, and collaborated with other interns and employees on various side projects. I was also a part-time intern at the non-profit, the Global Climate Pledge, where I was an intern manager overseeing interviews and training of incoming interns, leading weekly meetings, and interviewing various Rotary Club members on topics of sustainability. I also helped to build the Global Climate Pledge's website and did some further website development for them.
Katie: I had a student fellowship with UVA's Decarbonization Academy; I did environmental history research at Morven, which involved exploring historic documents to gather information about how the site's environment has changed, including phenology observations and recordings of farm labor. I worked in Charlottesville, and my work was a mix of on-site and remote.
How did you find your internships?
Sophie: I found both my internships through Handshake! It was a lot of looking up positions under the keywords of 'environmentalism', 'sustainability', 'ESG', etc.
Katie: I found out about the opportunity from two sources- the UVA Sustainability newsletter, and my professor forwarding an announcement about the program.
What was the most interesting thing you learned through your summer experience?
Sophie: This summer, I was able to understand the importance of effective and efficient communication. I'm not sure if that's SUPER interesting, but it is definitely a great lesson I learned this summer. (and something I know will come in handy for the future!)
Katie: This summer I found it very interesting to learn about the relationships and interactions between academic researchers and the community as a whole. Attending UVA I’ve often been exposed to only the researcher-side of issues, and didn’t learn as much about the importance of community connections and understanding the people affected by your area of research; during my summer fellowship, I got to experience those interactions and learn just how vital community involvement and participation are to responsible research.
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone looking for a summer experience like yours?
Sophie: For someone in the sustainability field, I think it's great to be creative and innovative during the interview. I think that will show employers that you can think out of the box for different ideas when it comes to decarbonization, renewable energy, and other technological advancements. Not only that, I think it's always a plus to have an innovative approach to any situation that you could face during your summer experience.
Katie: Be flexible! Whether you have a specific career path in mind or are still figuring out what you want to do, taking a job in an unexpected position can expose you to vitally important experiences and perspectives that you might never have considered. Don’t be paralyzed by the need to find the “perfect” job- focus more on getting the most out of whichever experiences you find.