Agency Sponsor: Alex Jones, asjones@ucsc.edu
If Interested, submit the Campus Natural Reserve Internship Application. This is an unpaid internship.
# of Interns:
Agency Description:
The 789-acre UC Santa Cruz Campus Natural Reserve (CNR) is an outdoor classroom and living laboratory located steps from the university’s traditional classrooms and student dorms. We monitor plant and animal populations, provide environmental education, and assist with planning and implementation of land management projects on the main residential UCSC campus. CNR Stewardship focuses on a variety of small scale land management efforts across the main campus lands.
Intern Responsibilities:
CNR Interns will assist with a wide variety of stewardship tasks on the Campus Natural Reserve and surrounding campus natural lands. Stewardship projects include the following: (1) woody plant removal from coastal prairie, (2) coastal prairie and forest monitoring (3) management of invasive plant species, including surveillance, monitoring, identification, mapping, and removal, (4) trail maintenance and erosion control on reserve trails, (5) assisting with trail closures, (6) cleaning out abandoned camps and other forest and meadow trash piles, and (7) installing signs and fences. And probably more!
Other Requirements:
- Throughout the course of the Quarter interns will visit diverse habitats in various portions of the Campus Natural Reserve, and will pick up some natural history of various plants and animals along the way.
- Internships require punctuality, a strong work ethic, and the ability to work outside in all weather conditions in rough, uneven terrain and in dense thickets.
- Interns will gain experience with a wide variety of skills needed to manage and maintain a natural reserve that receives significant human use. Training on the safe use of hand tools will be provided.
- Interns should wear closed-toed shoes, long pants, and should have a long-sleeved upper layer they can put on when we work in dense vegetation. Interns should also bring lunch and enough water for the day (1 to 2 liters).
Intern Shifts:
Shifts are likely Tuesdays 9:30am – 3:30pm but are subject to change
Location: Internship will meet in Natural Sciences 2 room 463 or other on-campus location near Science Hill
Key Words: Biodiversity Conservation, Ecology/Natural History, Plants/Restoration