Sustainability Catalyst Internships
The Sustainability Catalyst Internships offer U of T graduate students paid opportunities to work with partners on real-world sustainability solutions across the Greater Toronto Area, while receiving additional support from university 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).
What’s On this page
Students gain meaningful experience and opportunities to contribute to real-world sustainability issues
Partners gain current insights and advanced research skills that will help address sustainability priorities within the organization
Students & partners gain support from CECCS throughout: from project scoping and recruitment to hiring, payroll administration and intern management
How It Works
This paid summer internship is open to partners from public, private and non-governmental organization sectors from across the Greater Toronto Area and full-time U of T graduate students (Master’s 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.
What our students & partners have said about the internship
“This internship gave me the opportunity to bridge academic knowledge with practical, real-world challenges in the sustainability and building policy sector.”
Yazan Zamel (Student)
Sustainable Buildings Canada
“This internship has been invaluable. The intern’s thorough research and literature review, and interviews with potential program partners, has been instrumental in developing the direction and scope of work for our new home energy loan program.”
Nicola Lashley (Partner)
City of Toronto Environment, Climate & Forestry Division
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.
Why host an intern?
Specialized Knowledge
Bring the skills of a U of T grad student into your organization – ideal for research-driven or time-bound sustainability projects
Graduate Employability
Work with the top university in Canada for graduate employability (Times Higher Education)
#1 Ranking
Partner with the most sustainable university in North America and the top two globally (QS World University Rankings)
Streamlined Recruitment
We support project scoping, candidate screening, shortlisting and onboarding
End-to-end Program Support
We manage the payroll, provide professional development and guide interns through a structured, peer-supported experience
Build Your Talent Pool
Mentor & identify future leaders who are about to enter the workforce
What kinds of projects can U f T graduate students do?
Students work on projects determined by successful partner applicants in any area of sustainability from social 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
City of Toronto Environment, Climate & Forestry Division | Akshaya Kaliappan
City of Toronto Environment, Climate & Forestry Division | Akshaya Kaliappan
Akshaya worked on supporting the expansion of Toronto’s Home Energy Loan Program (HELP) with the city’s Environment, Climate & Forestry (ECF) Division. The initiative focuses on helping homeowners implement flood resilience measures to reduce urban flooding risks, prevent property damage and health hazards, minimize financial burdens, and strengthen long-term community resilience through targeted retrofits.
Ontario Nature | Marcellinus Essah
Ontario Nature | Marcellinus Essah
Marcellinus worked with Ontario Nature to examine the status of endangered species in Ontario, the threats they face, and gaps in current policies to identify opportunities for stronger protections and inform strategies to halt species extinction, while supporting a healthy, biodiverse environment.
North York General Hospital | Helena Tang
North York General Hospital | Helena Tang
Helena worked with North York General Hospital to develop a comprehensive sustainability framework and 10-year roadmap to guide targeted efforts that reduce emissions and integrate sustainability into hospital operations and decision-making.
Information for Students
As a Sustainability Catalyst intern, you will work on an applied research project determined by a partner organization in the Greater Toronto Area.
Why apply to be an intern?
Use and develop your skills to provide a useful sustainability research project for an organization in the public, private, or non-profit sector that will make a tangible difference in their work.
- Gain paid part-time work experience with one of our partners at a Research Assistant level at U of T ($31.10/hour plus benefits)
- Be part of a Catalyst cohort that will receive career development opportunities and project support from CECCS throughout your internship
- Have your project showcased online and at relevant U of T or partner event
Program requirements: You were enrolled in a full-time graduate program (Master’s & PhD) at U of T in the 2025-26 academic year. As this is a part-time internship, international students are also eligible.
- You are in good academic standing and not on academic probation
- You are legally entitled to work in Canada and will be residing within the Greater Toronto Area during the internship
- You have confirmed your eligibility to work the required hours by checking the guidelines of any graduate student funding you hold. It is the award recipient’s responsibility to comply with the rules and regulations of their award(s).
Funding
Partners pay the internship salary at the established U of T rate (currently $31.10/hour plus benefits) for a minimum of 250 hours.
A select number of internships will be eligible to receive a subsidy from CECCS (prioritized for non-governmental organizations 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.
Submit a Project Proposal
Internship project proposals for summer 2026 are now open!
Application deadline: January 16, 2026
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.
The host organization must also identify a project mentor who alongside the Sustainability Catalyst Project Manager will support the intern throughout the project.
Questions about a potential project idea? Reach out to the project manager.