Sustainability Intern (UNR Research & Innovation - Sustainable Nevada, Pack Intern, Spring '27)

**This internship is hosted by University of Nevada, Reno - Research & Innovation (Sustainable Nevada) and sponsored by the Nevada Career Studio and ASUN. 

Students are highly encouraged to complete a 15 minute drop-in or schedule an in-person or virtual 30-minute appointment with a Career Mentor BEFORE submitting an application. Resumes and cover letters that do not meet NCS best practices will not be included in applicant packages to employers. 

After the application period closes in Handshake, the NCS Internships Team reviews the applicants and sends eligible students' applicant packages to employers for them to reach out to conduct interviews and make the final intern selection. Employers will contact students directly if they are interested in moving forward with them as a candidate. 

University of Nevada, Reno - Research & Innovation (Sustainable Nevada) 

About University of Nevada, Reno - Research & Innovation (Sustainable Nevada): 

Sustainable Nevada is an effort to promote and embed sustainability across UNR's campus in both operations and academics, and demonstrate leadership in this area. As part of the university's strategic goal to, "Make Silver and Blue the New Green," Research & Innovation houses the Sustainability Manger, who is responsible for the planning and execution of these efforts across the university campus. 

Internship Description: 

The Sustainability Intern will support the Sustainability Manager with long-term projects through data collection and communication to relevant contacts across campus operations, to ensure that relevant monthly metrics are being collected in a timely and accurate manner. 

The intern will also support outreach and engagement, by sharing the student perspective to help development appropriate engagement strategies for the university and promote involvement in sustainable actions and activities. This also would include event planning, such as Earth Day and/or volunteer events, as well as building relevant outreach channels (e.g. newsletter, social media). 

A successful intern will have familiarity with sustainability concepts to ensure that relevant information is being distributed, including the ability to learn and communicate the university’s sustainability practices to diverse audiences, through engaging in meaningful conversation and answering questions from individuals.  

This workplace will foster an understanding and appreciation for sustainability that goes beyond concepts and into the nitty-gritty of what that means in a workplace, while developing and refining the important professional skills, like communication and data management, that are often developed on the job. 

Duties/Responsibilities: 

• Compile and enter data from across campus contacts (e.g. related to facilities, waste, utilities); 
• Reach out to data contacts to request data and/or clarify questions; 
• Coordinate and attend outreach events for the campus community (e.g. tabling events, Earth Day celebration, volunteer events); 
• Assist with marketing efforts (e.g. social media, newsletter development); 
• Utilize data visualization and tracking tools to present and analyze data; 
• Field questions related to sustainability from the campus community, as needed; 
• Visit sites across the campus to check on items (e.g. identifying plants, examining waste and recycling for contamination); 
• Assist in the development of grant applications as opportunities arise; 
• Occasional direct involvement in physical activities that require lifting, squatting, carrying loads of up to 20 pounds as needed (e.g. conducting a waste characterization study – sorting through trash and recycling bins, tree plantings, etc.); 
• Other duties as assigned by the Sustainability Manager related to campus sustainability operations. 

Goals and Expectations of the Intern: 

• Complete 150 hours of work as an intern (8-15 hours per week, 15 weeks total) 
• Develop and grow professional workplace skills around communication, engagement, and data management. 
• Gain understanding of how sustainability topics apply in a real-world setting and learn to navigate the challenges and opportunities that come with sustainability-related work.  
• Learn how to operate data management platforms (e.g. excel). 
• Be able to answer general questions about sustainability operations related to the campus from general audiences. 
• Assist the Sustainability Manager in helping the University, “Make Silver and Blue the New Green,” as stated in the Strategic Plan. 
• Learn management skills and principles related to program management and planning. 

Required Qualifications: 

• Must be a degree-seeking undergraduate student at the University of Nevada, Reno during the Spring ‘27 semester 
• December ‘26 or earlier graduates are not eligible for the Pack Internship Grant Program 
• A passion for the environment and considering a career in sustainability and environmentally focused work. 
• Organized and willingness to speak to unfamiliar and diverse audiences. 
• Maintaining a positive attitude and strong work ethics. 
• Ability to problem solve (i.e. attempt to figure things out, while understanding when appropriate to ask for help). 
• Basic to intermediate skills with Microsoft Office (particularly Excel and Outlook). 
• Willingness to learn and receive feedback. 

Preferred Qualifications: 

Ideally, completed sustainability or environmentally focused coursework such as being enrolled in a related major (e.g. geography, environmental science, environmental engineering, ecology) or a complementary major (e.g. sociology, political science, public health, geology, public health) and a sustainability-focused minor/certificate (e.g. Tahoe certificate in Sustainability).  

Candidates with a background in data management tools such as ArcGIS, and advanced skills in Excel are appreciated. 

Desired Schedule for Intern:  

Applicants must be available to work in-person in the Applied Research Facility on the UNR campus during the office hours of 10am – 5pm. Coordination and respect to their class schedule and load will be accommodated, but a regular dedicated time of at least 3-4 hour shifts is heavily preferred. Availability for special events on evenings and weekends as needed, which will be discussed too. 

PIGP internships require interns to complete 150 hours during their internship. It is the intern’s responsibility to ensure this requirement is met.