Flexible, hands-on, (mostly) outdoor internship

Friends of Five Creeks (fivecreeks.org) offers short-term, part-time, paid internships for people to build skills and grassroots experience on their way to careers helping the environment. 

Our small, 28-year-old organization, a partner group of 501(c)3 Berkeley Partners for Parks, is all-volunteer except for these internships. We revitalize natural areas from Bay to hills, Berkeley to Richmond, on the east side of San Francisco Bay.  We also monitor, do citizen science, engage and educate the public, and both collaborate with and pressure agencies. Broadly, we seek to increase the health, stewardship, and protection of urban water bodies, natural areas, plants, and animals.  We also work to increase citizen stewardship, understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of local nature --  including preparedness for and dealing with a changing climate. Please review our website, fivecreeks.org, including projects and e-news, to get an idea what we do.

We seek people from a wide variety of backgrounds, and welcome those who may face financial hardship. Skills and experience are valued, but most important are motivation, curiosity, clear critical thinking, and enjoying fairly hard work outdoors. Most interns are college seniors (including rising) or recent graduates, but we also welcome career-changers and those with other credentials or experience, including some juniors. 

The backbone of our work is controlling invasives. Other challenges change constantly.  Interns  have done e-DNA sampling ; mapped and documented woodrat nests; set up automated water monitoring;  documented algal and invertebrate life along shorelines; created displays, interpretive signs, and flyers; and researched and written for our e-news.  We welcome your ideas, and can offer semi-independent projects suitable for honors or other projects, although these will not be fully paid.

You can learn safe and effective use of tools, how to identify various native and non-native plants and animals,  and restoration and management techniques including some mapping and monitoring.  You can get some understanding of local plant and animal communities, challenges ranging from effects of climate change to urban social problems,  history including environmental justice and a healthy dose of skepticism,  and dealing with government agencies.  What you learn may be largely up to you – ask! 

Interns should be able to do the following:

• Be able to work on a weekend day at least twice a month, and at least one weekday morning or afternoon weekly. Being available on Tuesday mornings for our Weekday Weed Warriors is a plus. On average, you can expect to work an average of about 8 hours a week.
• Get to work sites reliably  and on time, possibly including walks of up to a mile.  Generally, you need to be a strong cyclist or have a car.
• Do reasonably sustained physical work for at least three hours and lift and carry 30 pounds.  After instruction, safely and effectively use a variety of hand tools of different sizes, and teach others.
• Work independently and take initiative , work with a partner or small group, and with training, lead varied groups of volunteers.
• Follow instructions and regularly check and respond to email, phone calls, or text messages.

Schedule and pay:  Schedules are flexible and by agreement. Internships are temporary and short-term, without benefits or Workers Compensation insurance.   Wages are local minimum.  We reimburse transit or car-travel costs at IRS rates for trips of up to 10 miles, but not taxis, Uber, or similar.   Interns must keep records of hours and travel that meet IRS reporting requirements and submit them promptly with an invoice and Social Security number adequate for tax records.  Interns should be vaccinated for COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.

If interested, email us at f5creeks@gmail.com. Tell us something about yourself and what you are looking for, ask questions, and send a resume if you have one.