More photos from this internship can be found here
Our Wildlife and Conservation partner is a charity dedicated to inspiring people to appreciate and care for wildlife and the environment. The center is located in North Berwick on the Eastern seacoast of Scotland, overlooking the wildlife-rich waters of the Firth of Forth. The organization is involved in a wide range of activities, including fund-raising, events and festivals, interpretation, translation and children’s activities. The center inspires over 200,000 annual visitors to appreciate, learn, and care for Scotland’s natural environment. Internship opportunities exist in teaching/educational programs, the Discovery Center, and center events and exhibits related to the visitor experience, and identifying and designing resources to improve staff/visitor interaction.
Our partner organization strives to inspire appreciation and care for wildlife and the environment. The center reinvests all proceeds in the work of the charity and relies on the help of all its volunteers, members, and sponsors to survive. They are a world leader in sustainable wildlife tourism and environmental education that brings people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds closer to wildlife. The center follows good environmental practices in its daily activities such as, continual sustainable improvements, proper waste disposal, and prevention of polluting activities. Additionally, the center offers a variety of online web-cams that broadcast live pictures of the rich wildlife in the Firth of Forth throughout the year.
The host organization will work with you to tailor your internship focus to your individual skill sets and needs, as they match with the needs of the organization. Descriptions of sample focus areas are below:
Education
Interns can assist with planning, preparation, and delivery of environmental teaching programs. The center also has a formal teaching program for schools, and a more informal “Puffin Club” aimed at younger children that involves them in practical, fun, hands on environmental and conservation instruction.
Website Development and Technology
Interns can lead a project with local schools to produce and maintain a website with podcasts to allow students and tourists alike to participate in a virtual conservation/environmental tour of the area’s coastline and marine habitats (Wildlife Websites and Podcasts). They can also work on an ‘Environmental Portal’ website, which acts as a one-stop shop for ALL environmental matters from endangered species to recyclable packaging and environmentally friendly cleaning products.
Marketing and Eco-Tourism
Interns can work with the staff to enhance the visitor experience, develop a study to identify strengths and weaknesses of the overall program, and help identify and design resources for the staff/visitor interaction. Interns might also be involved in developing a training program for staff, and producing a monitoring system to evaluate the training/resources.
Interns are expected to demonstrate:
Ideally, interns will have previous experience in working within a tourist attraction, environmental and conservation awareness, drama and/or teaching experience, and/or web design skills.
*Fee amounts are calculated with an exchange rate from British Pound at the time of posting.
Interns arrange their own housing.
Summer: January 25
Fall: April 15
Winter: September 1
Spring: November 15
-Project management; customer service experience, especially in working within a tourist attraction
-Environmental and Conservation awareness
-Drama and/or Teaching Experience
-Web design skills and good social skills