Internships
Internships can provide you with an opportunity to gain real-world experience through a workplace project of 120 or 240 hours over a semester. These internships assist in developing your employability in terms of verbal and written communication, research, and problem-solving skills.
One of the key differences of a Sustainability internship is the independent, research-led experience provided to you, allowing you to make a unique contribution. You can design and develop your own project within a broad scope and are awarded the opportunity to work on emerging ideas and methods in sustainability. We currently support internships from the College of Business and Economics Internship Program (undergraduate and postgraduate), and the Australian National Internships Program. We can also facilitate internships from other areas in the University.
CBEA3070 / CBEA6070 College of Business and Economics Internship Program
Open to students enrolled in an ANU BE academic program. The CBE Internships provide students with an opportunity to gain real-world experience through a workplace project of 120 hours (for 6 units) or 240 hours (for 12 units), approximately 12 or 24 hours per week over 10 weeks. The program also includes 5 practical workshops throughout the semester to prepare students for their internships and future careers. The internship project has a strong focus on developing students' employability in terms of their teamwork, communication and problem-solving skills. Each intern will show evidence of competencies and skills acquired through close working relationships and collaboration with professional colleagues, a workplace supervisor and academic advisor. Every individual intern will be supported by the BE Careers and Student Employability team including Course Convenor, Tutor, Career consultants, and Program Coordinator.
Australian National Internships Program
Experience the heart of Australian policy-making and politics through a research project with the Australian National Internships Program. ANIP internships are open to current undergraduate and postgraduate students from all academic disciplines. ANIP is the only university program that offers Commonwealth Parliamentary Internships to students from across Australia. Interns are based in the offices of MPs and Senators and engage with a range of activities that shape national policy making. ANU students can also undertake ANIP internships with the ACT Legislative Assembly, Government agencies, Diplomatic Missions, NGOs and Think-tanks. Placements are for one, two or four days per week and the ANIP course includes workshops on policy research and professional skills.
Student and internship projects
| Project name | Project description | Project status |
|---|---|---|
| Carbon Emissions Events Visualiser
| Honours Student Isabella Federle developed an interactive visualiser for participants and organisers of OzCHI22. Read the full report (PDF, 2043 KB). | Complete |
| Web App to Choose a Greener Transportation Method in Business Trips
| Honours Student Zhiyuan Ning designed a mobile app that motivates ANU staff to choose a transportation method that reduces their carbon footprint on business trips. Read the full report (PDF, 73.2 KB). | Complete |
| Corporate Sustainability/ESG Frameworks
| Yuchen Liu developed proposed an ESG reporting method. Read the full report (PDF, 297 KB). | Complete |
| HR Levers for Travel Behaviour Change
| Nick Warren-Smith reviewed University policies and resources to identify areas where travel behaviour may be influenced without sacrificing opportunities for staff and the core missions of the University. Read the full report (PDF, 510 KB). | Complete |
| Carbon Credit Market Assessment
| Tom Adams investigated the viability of several short-term offsetting strategies for the University, using qualitative analysis to identify and contrast potential approaches to reaching net zero emissions. Read the full report (PDF, 684 KB) | Complete |
| Pathways towards ANU Below Zero: A review of behavioural change, waste management, and carbon sequestration
| A critical literature review was performed to evaluate behavioural change and waste management and carbon sequestration strategies in universities such as the University of Cambridge, and organisations of Blue Planet. This evaluation highlighted 11 principles contributing to universities’ success in behavioural change and waste management strategies to reduce carbon emissions which may be beneficial for consideration by ANU Below Zero. Four enabling environments were identified for effective carbon sequestration: long-term commitment, research funding, alignment with circular economy policies, and carbon accounting mechanisms. Read the full report (PDF, 833 KB). | Complete |
| Soft Plastic Audit at an ANU hall of residence
| An ANU undergraduate decided to do an "at home exchange" after COVID-19 postponed her exchange to Canada. Laura moved into Fenner Hall on the ANU campus and decided to conduct an audit of the soft plastics her fellow residents were using and then disposing. Read how Laurea went with collecting, storing and weighing the mountains of soft plastics as well as her conclusions around corporate responsibility to increase awareness of how to dispose of these refuse items. Read the full report. | Complete |