Summer 2027 Clean Energy Business Intern

Natural Resources Defense; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 410,000 - 501,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid internship

Hybrid work model

Job summary

NRDC (the Natural Resources Defense Council) invites a graduate intern to supportCampaigns & Organizing initiatives in energy policy and market research. The role offers exposure to senior leaders and hands-on data work across sectors like solar, geothermal, and storage.

The intern will produce trend briefs, dashboards, and case analyses while located in one of NRDC’s offices and working onsite three days per week. Compensation is a $10,000 stipend over ten weeks.

Qualifications

• Must be currently enrolled in a graduate program.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Able to work independently.
• Project management and/or problem solving skills.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Research and/or data analysis skills.
• Commitment to NRDC’s mission, values, and DEI principles.

Responsibilities

• Support ongoing projects and priorities for NRDC’s Center for Campaigns & Organizing.
• Assist with the Energy sector research and policy materials.
• Develop sector trend briefs, dashboards, and case analyses.
• Prepare executive discussion guides and capstone recommendations.
• Collaborate with senior directors and policy staff.

Skills

Written and verbal communication

Independent worker

Project management

Attention to detail

Research and data analysis

Mission and DEI commitment

Education

Graduate student enrollment

Job description

Overview

NRDC (the Natural Resources Defense Council) works to safeguard the Earth, its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends. NRDC combines the power of more than 3 million members and online activists with the expertise of some 800 policy advocates, lawyers, scientists, and communication experts to confront the climate crisis, protect nature, ensure the rights of all people to clean air, clean water, and healthy communities. As an international nonprofit environmental organization, NRDC is working to address the world’s most urgent environmental challenges, and advance innovative, science-based, and enforceable solutions.

Since our founding in 1970, NRDC has helped craft and deliver many of America’s foundational environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act. Today, we continue to lead in advancing and defending strong environmental protections at the local, state, federal and international levels, as well as through the marketplace. Our team works across the United States and around the world, from offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., as well as in Beijing, and New Delhi (a subsidiary of NRDC India Pvt. Ltd.).

Supported by our members and online activists, NRDC is driving impactful solutions that confront the climate crisis, defend nature and safeguard public health across Asia, Africa, and the Americas. At NRDC, we believe lasting change happens when people bring their talent, passion, and expertise together for a common purpose: to build a cleaner, healthier, and more resilient world. Learn more at nrdc.org.

Our interns play an active role on the front lines of the environmental movement. Over the course of an internship, NRDC interns work with lawyers, scientists, or policy analysts in different program areas and amass experience that they could not have obtained anywhere else. Interns also have access to various events to enhance their NRDC experience.

NRDC interns may support or work on:

• Research, data collection, and analysis
• Writing and developing materials for state and federal campaigns
• Supporting with designing equitable policy solutions
• Copywriting and editing social media posts and supporting on marketing campaigns
• Brainstorming opportunities for process improvements, new vendors, partnerships, and engagement
• Project management of department and team-wide initiatives

You can find examples of work by our interns on our Careers Page.

Responsibilities

POSITION SUMMARY

NRDC's Center for Campaigns & Organizing is seeking a graduate intern to support ongoing projects and priorities for our partner E2 (Economy+Environment) and the Cleantech Leaders Roundtable (CTLR). This intern will report into the Senior Director of Business Outreach & Engagement. This intern can be based out of our New York, Chicago, or Washington, DC office. Interns are expected to be onsite 3 days per week.

The Clean Energy Business Intern will produce a 2027 Energy Business Trends series comparing four fast-moving clean energy sectors against the oil and gas industry. The sectors are solar, geothermal, and battery storage. This intern will also complete a focused case study on conventional natural gas versus renewable natural gas (RNG). The research will track where capital, deal flow, project pipelines, jobs, and supply chains are moving. It will also look at how rising electricity demand from data centers and new manufacturing, changing federal tax credit timelines and state policy are reshaping competition across the energy economy.

The findings will feed directly into E2/CTLR's work. This intern will gain direct exposure to senior industry leaders and learn how market data turns into decisions by executives and policymakers. Key deliverables can include sector trend briefs, a comparative market dashboard, an RNG vs. natural gas business case analysis, executive discussion guides, and a capstone report recommending where clean energy leaders can find growth, partnerships and policy wins.

Qualifications

REQUIREMENTS

• Must be currently enrolled in a graduate program
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Able to work independently
• Project management and/or problem solving skills
• Strong attention to detail
• Research and/or data analysis skills
• Commitment to NRDC’s mission, values, and DEI principles

DETAILS

• Duration: 10-weeks | Commitment: 35 hours/week
  • Summer Session 1: Monday May 24, 2027 – Friday July 30, 2027
  • Summer Session 2: Monday June 7, 2027 – Friday August 13, 2027
  • Summer Session 3: Monday June 21, 2027 – Friday August 27, 2027
• Hybrid Work Model: Summer Interns are expected to be in office 3 days/week. We will not be able to offer relocation assistance for the summer.
• Stipend: This is a paid internship with a stipend equivalent of $10,000.00 paid bi-weekly over the course of the assignment.

NRDC is committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion, both in our work and in our workplace. We believe that celebrating and actively welcoming diverse voices and perspectives is essential to solving the planet’s most pressing environmental problems, and we encourage applications from candidates whose identities have been historically under‑represented in the environmental movement.

We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

The incumbent will not qualify as an employee, fellow, volunteer, or independent contractor of NRDC, nor will the incumbent be guaranteed employment at the end of the internship term.

NRDC operates under a hybrid work model. Interns are required to come into the office 3 days a week.

As a science-based organization, NRDC aims to do our part to help contain the COVID-19 public health crisis. For the sake of health, safety, and equity, we ask that people be vaccinated unless they have an approved medical or religious accommodation or other exemption in accordance with state and local law. We consider a person to be vaccinated two weeks after receiving one full course of a CDC-approved vaccine. In accordance with state or local law, new hires will be asked to attest to vaccination. Those wishing to do so may request medical or religious accommodations or other exemptions. NRDC treats all vaccination-related data confidentially, in keeping with local, state, and federal laws.

For more about NRDC, visit www.nrdc.org.