World Wildlife Fund (WWF), one of the world’s leading conservation organizations, seeks a Sustainable Livelihoods Undergraduate Intern, Global Science.

Major Function

Interventions designed to support and incentivize sustainable livelihoods and enterprises (for example, beekeeping, fish farming, seaweed aquaculture) are a crucial component of conservation programs worldwide. There are often different motivations for these kinds of investments: They can offer an entry point to partnering and building trust with communities to support conservation; can help meet community needs when conservation disrupts or limits environmental livelihood activities; or build resilience in the face of climate change. However, comprehensive understanding of the contexts within which these types of interventions have been and can be successful, and which can deliver better outcomes for different groups of people and nature - is still lacking. This lack of evidence may limit the effectiveness of our current investments in sustainable livelihoods and lead us to miss opportunities to scale impactful programs.

Supervised by members of the WWF-US Global Science team, and in partnership with the WWF Oceans team, the Sustainable Livelihoods, Science Intern will conduct a review of the scientific and grey literature to collate and systematically assess the current evidence base for sustainable livelihood interventions. Paired with findings from the Sustainable Livelihoods-Oceans intern (who will focus on gathering evidence from WWF programs), the internship results will provide a strong foundation to strengthen the evidence base for sustainable livelihood interventions and help WWF more effectively address resource degradation, poverty, and inequality with the coastal communities we partner with.  

• Learn about methods for effective and transparent literature reviews and apply them to conducting a desk-based literature review on sustainable enterprises in marine conservation
• Partner with the Sustainable Livelihoods, Oceans intern, to identify the subset of livelihood interventions to prioritize given WWF’s current and past investments
• Develop a typology of goals for sustainable enterprise investments, and use them to map the state of the evidence on effectiveness on achieving these goals, and identify major evidence gaps
• Compile information from review into a searchable resource for future use at WWF
• Together with the Sustainable Livelihoods, Oceans intern, analyze results and present findings to the WWF Global Science, WWF-US Oceans teams, and regional seascape teams in a final interactive seminar on Sustainable Enterprises

Minimum Requirements

• Only enrolled students are eligible for this internship as you must be able to receive academic credit from your current academic institution. Able to work either part time or full time, depending on class schedule and availability.
• Strong reading and writing skills
• Some experience or exposure to conservation science or sustainable development (e.g. via coursework)
• An interest in working in a cross-disciplinary environment, conducting groupwork, and the ability (or interest in learning how) to translate complex ideas across diverse audiences 
• Identifies and aligns with WWF’s core values:
  • COURAGE – We demonstrate courage through our actions, we work for change where it’s needed, and we inspire people and institutions to tackle the greatest threats to nature and the future of the planet, which is our home.
  • INTEGRITY – We live the principles we call on others to meet. We act with integrity, accountability, and transparency, and we rely on facts and science to guide us and to ensure that we learn and evolve.
  • RESPECT – We honor the voices and knowledge of people and communities that we serve, and we work to secure their rights to a sustainable future.
  • COLLABORATION – We deliver impact at the scale of the challenges we face through the power of collective action and innovation.

Preferred Qualifications

• Past experience with conducting literature reviews and using scientific publication databases
• Knowledge of community-based conservation and/or sustainable livelihood interventions in conservation

Learning Outcomes

• Conducting evidence reviews using robust systematic methods
• Project management and coordination
• Technical knowledge on sustainable enterprises and community-based conservation
• Experience in applying evidence to conservation decisions and programs
• Presentation and communication skills
• Group work and international collaboration

Compensation: 

Unpaid. For all unpaid internships, applicants must be enrolled in school and be able to obtain academic course credit from their university. 

To Apply:

• Submit cover letter and resume through our Careers Page,  Requisition #IN-25034
• Due to the high volume of applications, we are not able to respond to inquiries via phone

As an EOE/AA employer, WWF will not discriminate in its employment practices due to an applicant’s race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, or protected Veteran status. WWF values diversity and inclusion and welcomes diverse candidates to apply.