Eco-Internships Commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals: Why is this important?

Eco-Internships is an environmental nonprofit organization based out of Ottawa. At the forefront, we are committed to fostering the integration of youth within the environmental sector, as well as increasing the capacity of small environmental organizations across Canada. We do so by hiring youth interns through wage subsidy grants and other funding, and matching them with environmental jobs at nonprofits that need staffing support. To date, Eco-Internships has created over 180 internships, increasing the capacity of 70 different environmental organizations across Canada, primarily in the Ottawa area.

UN Sustainable Development Goals

At the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in 2015, all United Nations Member States adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which included the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 associated targets. These transformative and ambitious objectives need to be implemented globally by all countries, in hopes of balancing the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development worldwide. 

Integration of SDGs at Eco-Internships

With the help of Colleges & Institutes Canada’s ImpAct initiative, Eco-Internships has been able to support the advancement of SDG-aligned initiatives at 17 environmental organizations across Canada this year!

Our organization supports the advancement of many SDG aligned initiatives at organizations that participate in our Intern Support Program (ISP). We operate with a small team, and while all of the UN goals and targets are of equal importance and it is of high hope to see them be obtained for all peoples in all countries, we do have limited capacity to expand new scopes. Therefore, in order to maximize our impact, we ensure to incorporate the following 5 SDGs which our organization aligns with most.

— SDG 4: Quality Education

We provide all youth interns with an educational, skill enhancing, career developing experience through our Intern Support Program (ISP). Whether the intern is a recent graduate and entering the work world, or changing career paths into the environmental nonprofit sector, the ISP provides them with helpful resources to support them excel in their internships. First and foremost, the interns are all required to take part in a mandatory nonprofit intern training course facilitated by the Capacity Building Institute. This ensures that all hired interns are well-equipped with the required skills and knowledge to have a successful internship experience. Every intern also has an assignment mentor that has completed the program previously, as well as completed a leadership training course to fully prepare them for mentoring the youth interns starting their placements. 

Inclusivity and equity are prominent barriers when it comes to quality education, therefore Eco-Internships subsidizes training fees for organizations that can not afford the full training costs to ensure all interns are provided an equal opportunity to have the training and support they need to be successful. We also provide coaching for organizations participating in the ISP, and throughout the hiring process, we also take proactive steps to ensure a fair and equitable application process by removing any barriers that may hinder individuals ability to apply or be hired.

— SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

SDG 8 is the Sustainable Development Goal that Eco-Internships most strongly aligns with. Many small nonprofits have a lack of capacity and resources, therefore the process of hiring interns can be daunting, time consuming, and oftentimes not an option. Through the ISP, we help to bridge this gap by informing hiring organizations about available funding opportunities for hiring youth interns, undertaking and/or assisting them through the application process, and providing human resources and staffing support. By doing so, we eliminate many of the barriers that often arise when onboarding and hiring new staff. When the interns are hired, we also require that they are paid a minimum of $20/hr, ensuring fair wages and decent work. Interns are often actively contributing to fundraising efforts for their employers, which also promotes economic growth within the sector.

More than 70% of the youth who completed the ISP have secured employment within 3 months.

— SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

Eco-Internships supports the goal of sustainable cities and communities through the Intern Support Program. Participants of the ISP, whether you are looking at interns or participating organizations, all work towards sustainability focused initiatives within their communities in one way or another. There are many organizations that participate in the ISP that work towards the goal of Sustainable Cities and Communities. Ottawa Biosphere Eco City (OBEC), is a past participant of the ISP and a great example of an organization that we have worked with that focuses on SDG 11. Their work focuses on engaging and educating Ottawa residents in anything and everything related to sustainability through the implementation of workshops, community planning, raising awareness, etc. Another great example is Community Associations for Environmental Sustainability (CAFES), a nonprofit based out of Ottawa and a longtime participant of the ISP. Their organization supports environmental initiatives within the local community and at the municipal level in order to contribute to the creation and preservation of a healthier and more livable city.

— SDG 13: Climate Action

Without a doubt, our planet is in dire need of climate action, therefore Goal 13—to take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts—needs to be of high importance at all organizations across the globe. Through the ISP, we promote this goal by encouraging youth to work and gain experience in the environmental sector by matching them with internship opportunities at small environmental organizations. By doing so, we also increase the capacity of these organizations, allowing them to further their missions, in turn increasing environmental awareness, knowledge, and impact. 

— SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

When looking at SDG 17, the associated target 17.17— encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships, building on the experience and resourcing strategies of partnerships—is most prevalent within our organization. Eco-Internships does not work towards partnerships globally as we focus on supporting youth and small-shops within Canada. Since we were founded in 2017, we have worked and created partnerships with 70 environmental organizations, often acting as a catalyst in connecting these organizations with each other, whether it comes to events, partnerships, sharing interns, etc. As many of these organizations are smaller in scale and have limited capacity, being matched with an intern through the ISP accommodates for the possibility of increasing their networks and outreach.

The Future of Eco-Internships

We will continue to take action towards the Sustainable Development Goals by increasing the number of youth and organizations we support through our Intern Support Program. For more information about Eco-Internships, please visit https://www.ecointernships.ca/.

Jesna Grewal is a Sustainable Development Goals Intern at Eco-Internships.