The IU Office of Sustainability
is now accepting applications for the
2010-11 Academic Year Internship Program in Sustainability
Please note the application deadline has been extended to
Friday, September 17, 11:59 PM
We will accept recommendations until
Monday, September 20, 11:59 PM
Visit http://www.iu.edu/~sustain/internships/ to apply
Continuing the tradition of the Indiana University Task Force on Sustainability, the Office of Sustainability (IUOS) addresses issues of environmental, economic and social sustainability in campus operations, academic programs, and university-community relations. This academic year, we are seeking another group of outstanding undergraduate and graduate students dedicated to advancing sustainability at Indiana University Bloomington.
The IUB Academic Year Internship Program in Sustainability will run from October through April. Funding is available to support twelve new sustainability-related internships. Four of these interns will join four continuing interns, working on ongoing IUOS projects. The other eight will join two other continuing interns, working collaboratively with IUOS and the Campus Sustainability Advisory Board on projects designed to meet the strategic goals of our seven working groups. Students will be expected to work approximately ten to fifteen hours per week over the course of the academic year and participate seminar in sustainability. Student interns and their mentors will have discretion in setting their work schedules to accommodate vacation and other commitments. Graduate students will be paid $11.00/hour and undergraduate interns $9.00/hour.
Applications can be submitted online at: http://www.iu.edu/~sustain/internships/. The online application and recommendation letters must be received by 11:59 PM, Friday, September 17, 2010. General information about the IUB Sustainability Program can be found at http://www.indiana.edu/~sustain. For more information about the internship program, click here.
Questions regarding internships or the application process can also be directed to Emilie Rex at ekrex@indiana.edu.
INTERNSHIPS MENTORED THROUGH IUOS
1. Campus Sustainability Metrics
In January of this year, the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) released the first official version of its Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS), a program aimed at assessing the sustainability of colleges and universities through a number of operational and academically- based metrics. Indiana University is a Charter Participant in this effort. This intern will continue the academic year and summer interns' efforts, expanding the groundwork for assessing IU's status and improving its ranking in these areas by exploring more accurate and proactive reporting through research and database development. This intern will also investigate the development of additional campus specific metrics for measuring sustainability and coordinate with other efforts to develop a comprehensive campus sustainability dashboard.
2. Green Events
The hundreds of events occurring monthly across the IUB campus contribute significantly to our collective carbon, waste and water footprints. This intern will develop and execute an implementation plan for green events at IUB based on the best practices guide and certification system created by the summer intern. Additionally, the intern will work with students to develop a green events consultancy corps aimed at providing student, faculty and staff with expertise on green event planning.
3. First Year Experience
The Office of First Year Experience Programs (FYE) and Residential Program Services (RPS) serve nearly 8,000 new students each year. Both organizations are working hard to integrate sustainability into their operations and programming. This intern will continue the work of the academic year and summer intern by collaborating with: (1) FYE to create a sustainability assessment and improve on existing sustainability initiatives, (2) RPS to implement the new Green Dorm Room Certification Pilot Program, and (3) the Residence Hall Association and Resident Advisors to create student centered programming focusing on sustainability.
INTERNSHIPS MENTORED THROUGH THE CAMPUS SUSTAINABILITY ADVISORY BOARD WORKING GROUPS
ACADEMIC INITIATIVES
4. Sustainability Academic Programs and Research Clearinghouse
Faculty, staff and students at IU conduct a considerable amount of research related to sustainability both domestically and internationally. There are also many sustainability related courses and co-curricular activities on campus. IU faces a considerable challenge in disseminating these activities beyond the campus. This intern will assist the Office of Sustainability Academic Initiatives Working Group in the development of a website summarizing sustainability related research on campus, and analysis of IU courses across departments and schools to assess their connections to sustainability issues. This intern will work with faculty to digest their research to short summaries to be posted on the web. The intern will also assist in collating information for the Office of Sustainability for the submission of IU's portfolio to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY AND LAND USE
5. Strategic Land Management
In March of 2010, the President released the Campus Master Plan for Indiana University Bloomington. The document outlines a thirty-year plan for building and spatial maintenance, renovation and construction, including an ambitious set of goals for sustainable land use. This intern will review and analyze the document and will assist in prioritizing these initiatives for the purpose of creating a strategic plan for environmental quality and land management.
FOOD
6. Feasibility of Edible Landscaping and Gardens on Campus
As interest in food and agriculture grows on campus, the Food Working Group is investigating possible locations suitable for edible landscaping and community gardens. This intern would be collaborating and coordinating with key stakeholders on campus to assess the feasibility of edible plant projects, including review of relevant past projects, interviews with previous project leaders, and potential incorporation of this information into a new project proposal under the guidance of the working group.
RESOURCE USE AND RECYCLING
7. Hoosier to Hoosier Community Sale
This year's Hoosier to Hoosier Community Sale effort filled the west concourse of Memorial Stadium with tons of reusable items collected from IUB residence halls, Greek houses and off campus properties. The sale of these items back to the community netted $10,500 for United Way, Habitat for Humanity and future sale efforts. This internship will build on the previous academic year and summer intern's work, with the goals of: (1) capturing more reusable items before they enter the waste stream, and (2) increasing the educational nature of the project through the integration of service learning classes and student organization programming.
SUSTAINABLE COMPUTING
8. E-waste Coordination
Over the last two years, Indiana University, in partnership with Apple, Inc. has collected over 1.4 million pounds of electronic waste, preventing bulk sale of these goods into overseas markets and risk of environmental contamination from improper disposal. The intern will be responsible for planning this 2011 Electronic Waste Collection Days event, communicating with multiple stakeholders including coordinating other IU campuses, departments across campus, residence hall managers, and community and corporate partners, and working on implementation and reporting on the event.
9. Document Management and Paper Reduction
This intern will assess paper usage of various departments and schools on the IUB campus and determine what alternatives may be available for reduction in the use of virgin paper. This intern will also investigate digital alternatives to paper for class work, forms, mailings, as well as document storage, retrieval and retention. The intern will analyze and report on other available technologies and options to reduce printing impacts, including duplex printing studies, print release stations, central departmental printers, user incentives and other strategies that have been successful at IU and elsewhere.
TRANSPORTATION
10. Transportation Infrastructure Funding
Currently there is no staff person responsible for monitoring transportation grant announcements and preparing grant applications for IUB. This intern would be established to scan grant announcements and prepare grant applications as directed. The intern would monitor grant announcements from US Department of Transportation, including modal administrations such as the Federal Transit Administration, the Federal Highway Administration, etc. Special attention will be paid to grant announcements for transportation enhancement projects for pedestrian and bicycle projects.
11. Parking Demand Economics
The supply and cost of parking is a significant contributor to a person's transportation mode choice. Currently, the cost of parking structures is not covered by permit fees. It must be subsidized by parking violation revenue. Travel Demand Management programs must have a strong understanding of parking supply, demand and costs to be effective. A study of similar institutions' parking permit fees and revenues methods and an economic analysis of parking at IU would be enormously valuable. This intern would conduct a study investigating parking policy options, parking elasticities, parking cash-out, and parking land capital.
