What’s On This Page
The Sustainability Catalyst Internships offer University of Toronto graduate students paid opportunities to work with partners on real-world sustainability solutions across the Greater Toronto Area, while receiving additional support from U of T staff.
The internships are part-time and run during the summer period each year from May to September. The internships are managed by the secretariat of the President’s Advisory Committee on the Environment, Climate Change, and Sustainability (CECCS).
HOW IT WORKS
This paid summer internship is open to partners from public, private and non-profit sectors from across the Greater Toronto Area and full-time U of T graduate students (Masters and PhD) from any program or discipline.
Sustainability Catalyst Interns work with mentors at the partner organization and put their applied research skills to work on an agreed sustainability challenge.
CECCS facilitates project definition and delivery, connects partners to promising students and provides support throughout the internship process.
Applications for partners open in February and students are awarded internships in March. More information about applying to be an intern will be posted once successful partners are identified.
What our students & partners have said about the internship
“The internship offers valuable opportunities for emerging professionals to gain experience, build connections, and put their degrees to good use by working on something they are passionate about.”
Nicola Schmidt, Zero-Waste & Green Economy Intern at the Toronto Environmental Alliance
“The opportunity for TCBN to participate in this initiative was exceptional. The [U of T intern’s] support with community engagement and policy analysis activities has directly contributed to our work ensuring inclusive approaches to the development of large infrastructure, energy and housing projects in Toronto.”
Kumsa Baker, Director of Community Engagement, Toronto Community Benefits Network
PARTNER WITH US
Do you have an applied research project that you need support with? Apply to be a host organization for our Sustainability Catalyst Internship Program to receive part-time support from a U of T graduate student/research assistant.
Benefits
Access to graduate students enrolled in U of T’s 200 graduate programs, including more than 60 professional programs
Work with the highest ranked university in Canada and #1 for graduate employability (Times Higher Education’s World University Rankings)
Benefit from dedicated research and capacity to address your sustainability challenges, opportunities and goals
Benefit from CECCS administrative & management support leading up to and during the internship
Help shape the next generation of leaders and create a talent pool of future employees
Partner with the most sustainable university in the world (QS World University Rankings 2025)
Emoji Source: OpenMoji
What kinds of projects can U of T graduate students do?
Students work on projects determined by successful partner applicants in any area of sustainability from social and justice issues to climate action and planetary health. Sample activities:
- conduct a literature, jurisdictional, or best practice review
- conduct and report on interviews or focus groups
- develop project engagement and action plans or toolkits
- develop case studies and assessment frameworks
- prepare a feasibility study
- build and assess lifecycle costing tools
- write a business case
- conduct and develop an environmental scan
- prepare a GHG emissions inventory
- design, implement and analyze a survey
- analyse and draft policy documents or briefing materials
- GIS mapping or community needs mapping
PAST PROJECTS & INTERNS
EcoSchools Canada | René Daranjo, MEd Curriculum & Pedagogy Student (2024 Intern)
René worked with EcoSchools Canada to implement curriculum-specific connections between environmental action and provincial curriculum. She also supported the development of a school certification status and recognition processes for schools doing outstanding environmental work in their communities.
City of Toronto | Aashna Pachai, MA Geography & Planning Student (2024 Intern)
Aashna worked with the City of Toronto Environment & Climate Division to support their PollinateTO Program and Climate Resilience Plan. She updated project inventories, conducted site visits, created visualizations, and wrote impact reports.
U of T Climate Action Network & the University of Cambridge | Yazan Zamel, MSc Civil Engineering Student (2023 Intern)
Yazan worked with U of T Climate Action Network and The University of Cambridge on a mapping project aimed at better understanding and characterizing climate networks in other jurisdictions. This included survey design, a literature review, and identifying key priorities based on the summary of results.
Funding
- Partners pay the internship salary at the established U of T rate (currently $36/hour including benefits) for a minimum of 250 hours
- A select number of internships will be eligible to receive a subsidy from CECCS (prioritized for non-profit and Indigenous organizations). Please indicate on your application if you would like to request this or contact our Project Manager to discuss
- U of T hires and manages the payroll for the interns
Application Process
Applications will be reviewed by a U of T panel. While we encourage a broad range of proposals, the application should clearly articulate an actionable applied research problem that a graduate student can complete over the course of the internship (assistance with project scoping will be available to successful applicants).
The host organization must also identify a project mentor who alongside the Sustainability Catalyst Project Manager, will support the intern throughout the project.
Our call for project applications will be available from January 28 – February 28, 2025. Contact the Project Manager with questions.