Sustainability Interns gain new skills in environmental sustainability while providing education and outreach in the Eagle Valley community. Interns will learn hands-on skills in fostering sustainable behaviors while also gaining valuable experience in how mountain communities, governments, and businesses are taking action and monitoring their environmental impacts.
The experiential learning focuses heavily on “Zero Waste,” recycling, and waste diversion, playing a larger role within Walking Mountains Waste reduction & Diversion Program. Interns staff zero waste events throughout the summer, ranging from small community concerts to large multi-day festivals. Interns are responsible for managing the waste stream at events and providing zero waste education and outreach for the community.
In 2023, the zero waste events team coordinated 130 days of events, reaching an estimated 301,042 people. Through these events, the team diverted 60,469.34 pounds of waste from the landfill.
Concurrently, interns have the opportunity to pursue projects within the Walking Mountains Sustainability Program Department in the following programs:
- Waste Reduction & Diversion
- Sustainable Business Training & Certification
- Sustainable Destination
- Energy & Buildings
- Climate Action Collaborative
- Sustainable Film Series
This internship has an additional focus on Professional Development, provided through individual sustainability research projects, field trips, and project work with partner organizations. Interns also have the opportunity to learn about other programs within Walking Mountains Science Center.
