CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY FALL/WINTER INTERN
Cascadia Consulting Group is a women-owned, private environmental consulting firm that develops and implements innovative solutions to today’s environmental challenges. Founded in 1993, Cascadia works with public and private-sector clients to advance sustainability through recycling and materials management, climate change mitigation and adaptation, energy efficiency, and water and natural resources management. The Cascadia team brings both expertise and creative thinking to research and analysis, strategic planning, program design and implementation, and outreach and evaluation. From our offices in Seattle (WA), Oakland (CA), and satellite locations, we serve clients across the country and abroad. Our mission is to inspire and empower communities everywhere to protect and restore our world.
Cascadia aspires to be a multicultural organization and seeks to hire individuals who contribute to our cultural fluency. We value employees who are aware of their own cultural lens, along with the impact it has on their interactions and work, and who can effectively connect across culture and difference, including race, class, gender identity, sexual orientation, and physical ability. Additionally, we hire individuals who value a collaborative, fast-paced work environment, who think creatively and communicate effectively, and who work hard to get the job done well. Consulting is about taking initiative, solving problems, and serving clients, so we seek staff members with skills in those areas.
Position Overview
We are offering a fall/winter internship to a highly motivated and organized individual to support our climate, sustainability, and natural resources analysis and planning work. Key aspects of the work will include researching policies and best practices, analyzing greenhouse gas emissions and climate change impacts, facilitating workshops and meetings, conducting interviews, preparing literature reviews, and distilling and translating complex information into clear, compelling materials for diverse audiences. The distribution of work among these key aspects will vary based on project load and applicant skillset. We are seeking applicants with excellent written and oral communication skills and strong quantitative and creative problem-solving capabilities as well as an interest in public and stakeholder engagement. Examples of work include the following:
- Support analytical tasks, such as greenhouse gas inventories, climate vulnerability assessments, and sustainability metrics tracking and analysis efforts.
- Conduct desktop research and interviews, analyze information and data, and synthesize findings into clearly written informative summaries, fact sheets, presentations, and reports.
- Research and track trends, issues, and policies related to climate change mitigation and adaptation, renewable energy, water resource management, habitat conservation, and other sustainability and conservation topics.
- Generate external-facing materials on climate change and sustainability topics for stakeholder meetings, public events, and websites and online dashboards.
- Produce high-quality work products and deliverables—such as polished written reports, fact sheets, tables, graphs, and other presentation pieces—that uphold Cascadia’s “brand” and reputation for exceptional, quality content and appearance.
- Support facilitation of multi-stakeholder meetings, workshops, task forces, and committees dedicated to a range of environmental topics.
- Incorporate environmental justice concepts and diversity, equity, and inclusion principles into daily work.
- Other duties as required.
Required Qualifications
This position requires a candidate with the following qualifications:
- A minimum of one year of professional experience working on climate, sustainability, and/or natural resource management issues.
- Demonstrated understanding of climate change issues, including greenhouse gas inventories and climate vulnerability assessments.
- Strong verbal and written communication skills and demonstrated ability to communicate complex issues clearly using simple, commonly accepted language.
- Basic to intermediate experience—and a willingness to expand skills—producing documents for an employer with Microsoft Office 365 programs such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
- Excellent organizational skills, along with great attention to detail.
- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple tasks or projects, balance competing demands, set priorities, and meet deadlines.
- Willingness and ability to work effectively in a dynamic, fast-paced work environment.
- Initiative, creativity, patience, empathy, and a sense of humor.
- Ability to work independently, with minimal guidance, as well as an ability to work effectively in a team.
Work Schedule
Demand for this work can vary as it occurs throughout the fall/winter. It is anticipated that this role will offer at least 20 hours per week, with the potential for additional hours. It will last 20-24 weeks, likely starting in September or October 2019. There is potential for this internship to transition into a full-time role at Cascadia, depending on work availability and performance.
Our goal is to determine work schedules at least 1-2 weeks in advance of planned work, so you can plan your schedule accordingly. It may have short periods of intensive work.
Compensation
This is a temporary, hourly, non-exempt position. Cascadia will compensate this role with an hourly wage of $20/hour. Temporary staff are not immediately eligible for health benefits.
How to Apply
Please send your resume and cover letter to jobs@cascadiaconsulting.com and indicate “Climate & Sustainability Intern - [Your Name]” in the subject line. Your cover letter should address your ability to meet the criteria in the Required Qualifications section and highlight relevant experience, education, and why you are interested in this position. Please state where you learned about the position. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis. Early application is encouraged.
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Cascadia Consulting Group is an Equal Opportunity Employer and values diverse perspectives and life experiences.
Cascadia does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), gender identity, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.