The SUNY Office of Sustainability and Climate Action seeks an intern in our Albany or New York City locations who is interested in working on environmental issues across our system, helping us implement the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act and Executive Order 22, assess carbon emissions and opportunities for reductions, develop systemwide policies and goals, and create a carbon action plan. The intern will gain experience working in a professional environment under the guidance of experienced practitioners and will have the satisfaction of contributing to the State’s ambitious climate program through state-wide planning, programming, and policy within SUNY and in coordination with other agencies. This is also a terrific opportunity for a student to hone skills and start to develop a professional network in the sustainability field and in the close-knit network of related agencies (DEC, NYSERDA, NYPA, OGS, Parks, DOT, and others).
Key Duties and Responsibilities:
Assist in data collection, input, and analysis for various energy and sustainability programs across all SUNY campuses in accordance with EO22 and other planning and reporting requirements.
Energy initiatives:
- Analyze campus decarbonization plans and prepare data, charts, and visualizations for presentations to various stakeholders.
- Monitor campus progress of energy efficiency projects.
- Assist campuses with assessment of collaborative opportunities related to energy efficiency matters.
- Opportunity and economic analysis of renewable energy development.
- Monitor energy funding programs and services offered through NYSERDA, NYPA, utilities or other entities.
- Identify sources for periodic campus training in energy related areas.
Transportation
- Assist in the preparation, implementation, and tracking of Zero Emission Vehicle plans to transition our light, medium, heavy duty, and off-road fleet.
- Opportunity analysis for EV charging stations.
- Opportunity analysis for mass transit.
- Monitor state and federal funding programs.
Waste
- Assist in the preparation, implementation, and tracking of campus waste reduction plans, using the EO22 waste template.
Other sustainability initiatives:
- Participate in the collection and organization of data to ensure a workforce that is prepared for the innovation of transitioning to a sustainable environment.
- To facilitate the procurement of “green” supplies, help develop buying guides, develop tracking mechanisms in Business Intelligence, and generate reports.
- Support Climate Corps internship program
- Support green workforce development initiatives.
Outreach
- Review SUNY Sustainability webpage to assure and recommend and draft up to date information.
- Develop Sustainability social media platform and help create content, including short-form videos, for delivery on TikTok, Instagram, Linked In, Facebook, Twitter, and emerging social media platforms.
- Maintain and enhance sustainability-related listservs.
- Develop student-facing outreach.
Required Qualifications:
- Must be a currently enrolled SUNY student.
- Must be adept with Microsoft Office Suite, especially Excel and PowerPoint.
- Strong data analysis and analytics abilities.
- Practical experience, which may include coursework, with database management systems and data analysis tools including Excel.
- Strong writing and speaking communication skills.
- Ability to deliver outputs on tight deadlines.
- A growth mindset and team player who works collaboratively and is willing to give and receive feedback.
Preferred Qualifications:
- A graduate student enrolled in programs related to public communication, policy development, or data analytics.
- Experience with Adobe Creative Suite and social media platforms.
- 3.0 GPA or higher.