Deschutes Land Trust, Resilient Lands Internship, Summer 2025
Every summer, The Bill Lane Center for the American West offers many opportunities for Stanford undergraduates (including graduating seniors and co-terms) to work with organizations throughout the West. Through these internships, students can explore careers in natural history, conservation, land use, museum curation, resource management, energy and more.
All internships are full-time for nine to ten weeks during the summer. They are fully funded by the Lane Center with stipends ranging from $7,500 to $10,000.
The Lane Center has placed hundreds of interns in positions across the West since 2005. It has developed strong relationships with host organizations and works hard to ensure interns have successful and enriching experiences.
For more information about the internship program, please visit the FAQs page, or email Education Manager Corinne Thomas.
Details about previous summer student interns and their placements can be found here.
Student reflections about the internship experience can be found by visiting the Out West student blog and the Lane Center Instagram channel.
Stipend Information:
The Bill Lane Center will provide a base stipend of $7,500 with additional funding for student financial aid and location, if applicable, up to $10,000. The stipend is provided to cover living expenses and, if applicable, part of the summer earnings expectation of the Office of Financial Aid.
The stipend is not intended to be, and is not, a paid, hourly wage. An internship is an educational and experiential learning opportunity intended for the student to apply their academics and gain real-world experience.
Description of the Organization and the Internship:
The Deschutes Land Trust's mission is to conserve and care for the lands and waters that sustain Central Oregon, so local communities and the natural world can flourish together for generations to come. We envision a future of strong and healthy natural and human communities--where we work together to conserve and care for the lands that make Central Oregon an incredible place to live, work, and grow. Land Trust staff strive to conserve and care for the lands and water of Central Oregon by embracing and practicing these core values: integrity, diversity, quality, collaboration, adaptability.
This summer, join Deschutes Land Trust in exploring how our land conservation efforts enhance the climate resiliency of Central Oregon. Through exploration of recent research, peer-to-peer learning and field work, you will advance the Land Trust’s understanding of conserved lands vulnerability to climate change as well as mitigation strategies to reduce anticipated impacts.
In this internship, the intern will gain a familiarity with Land Trust program operations including conservation, stewardship and community engagement efforts. Working across programs, the intern will work with staff to refine research questions that will assist the Land Trust in reaching climate resiliency objectives and goals. The internship will culminate in a written report of the intern’s findings that they will share with Land Trust staff.
Internship Work Environment:
This is a hybrid internship and about 30% field work and 70% office work.
The intern will work primarily with the Conservation and Stewardship teams at the land trust but will also have the opportunity work with our Community Engagement team.
The intern will work with a specific department depending on the task. Climate vulnerability assessments are under the purview of Conservation and Stewardship staff, while stakeholder engagement activities with take place with Community Engagement staff.
Internship Day-to-Day:
A typical day in the office would consist of some meetings and time for independent project work. We have a hybrid remote office so the specific staff in the office varies from day to day. Field work will take place at various locations and would involve traveling to the site with either Stewardship or Conservation staff.
The Land Trust partners with researchers at a local university and there may be opportunities to interact with other students during field trips.
Transportation:
While a vehicle is not required for this internship (the Land Trust has organizational vehicles that the intern can use for work related activities), exploring the area's recreational opportunities is easier with one and may be desired for commuting to work, depending on where the intern secures housing.
Public transportation in Bend and surrounding areas is limited, though the Land Trust's office is located in downtown Bend and many staff bike-commute to work.
Housing: On-site housing is not available for this internship. The Land Trust staff are happy to help the intern in a housing search by reaching out to its networks.
Location: Bend, Oregon
- Support our conservation and stewardship teams in assessing climate vulnerability at land trust properties as well as mitigation strategies to reduce anticipated impacts.
- Visit Land Trust preserves and conservation easements to better understand how our land conservation work is connected to climate resiliency. This will include learning about Land Trust restoration efforts and our work conserving agricultural lands.
- Assist with stakeholder outreach through the development of community events in a stronghold watershed supporting Deschutes River steelhead.
- Summarize applicable findings in a written report and present to Land Trust staff at an in-person staff meeting.
Bill Lane Center internships are part of Cardinal Quarter opportunities and students from all disciplines are encouraged to apply. The opportunities are full-time (40 hours a week) for 9-10 consecutive weeks during the summer.
Specific start and end dates during the summer can be coordinated directly with the supervisor.
All undergraduates of any year, including graduating seniors, are eligible. Graduating seniors are eligible only if they are graduating in spring quarter. Students who have already graduated, e.g., fall or winter quarter of this academic year are not eligible.
Preference is given to students who have not previously been awarded a Bill Lane Center West internship and to students who will be enrolled the following fall quarter.
For more application advice, please visit the BLC’s FAQs page.
Please note:
- Students are not permitted to engage in another full-time internship, job, or volunteer opportunity (whether funded by Stanford or otherwise) during this full-time, summer internship.
- Student athletes should confirm the impact of any awarded stipend on their athletic eligibility by contacting the Compliance Services Office prior to committing to an internship.
- New Stipend Policy per the U.S. Department of Education: A stipend is considered a resource and it may have an impact on a student’s financial aid. To comply with US Department of Education regulations, student payments, awards, prizes, and gifts that are made available to the student because they are a Stanford student, must be reported to the Financial Aid Office. The Financial Aid Office is responsible for the disbursement of stipend funds to undergraduates. For more information, please visit the Financial Aid Office's webpage about the student stipend policy.
Application Guidelines for this Internship:
There is no preference for certain class years.
Majors that are relevant to the work include: biology and ecology, conservation, natural resources, etc.
Required Skills:
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Conservation Commitment: an interest in or subject matter knowledge of climate change impact, mitigation and adaptation, and/or land conservation.
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Organization Skills: including attention to detail, time-management skills, and the ability to create efficiencies and set priorities.
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Research Skills: with guidance, the ability to search for, find, collect, interpret and evaluate information relevant to specific questions.
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Balanced Work Style: comfortable collaborating with a team on collective goals and in focusing on independent tasks.
Preferred Skills:
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Eagerness to Learn/Growth Mindset: willingness to approach work with sense of curiosity and creativity, and to seek out opportunities to learn through experience and practice. Ability to see challenges as an opportunity for growth and adaptation.
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Communication Skills: ability to communicate effectively in writing and in person with a diverse set of partners including landowners and partner organizations. Ability or willingness to learn to interpret technical information and synthesize into compelling and digestible summaries.
Selection of applicants:
Complete applications are screened by Lane Center staff and the top candidates are contacted for a first-round interview with staff from The Bill Lane Center for the American West.
After the first-round interviews, top candidates for the position are then selected by a Lane Center committee to be forwarded to the host organization for consideration and possible second-round interviews with their potential supervisors and other staff. Preference is given to students who have not previously been awarded a Bill Lane Center West internship and to students who will be enrolled the following fall quarter.
After consideration, host organizations will then notify the Lane Center of their preferred candidate and that applicant will receive an internship offer from the Bill Lane Center by email.
The applicant is expected to respond promptly (within 48 hours) via email to the offer or the offer will be rescinded and another candidate may receive the offer.
Once an applicant accepts the offer, they should promptly notify all other Stanford and non-Stanford programs to which they have applied that they have accepted the Lane Center internship offer and withdraw their candidacy from those other opportunities.
Applicants not selected will be notified by Lane Center staff as soon as possible.
