Washington Water Trust, Sustainable Waters Internship, Summer 2023
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 and last ten weeks during the summer. They are fully funded by the Lane Center.
The Lane Center has placed over 200 interns in positions across the West since 2005. As such, we have developed strong relationships with host organizations and work hard to ensure interns have successful and enriching experiences.
For more information about our internship program, please visit our FAQs page, or email Education Manager Corinne Thomas.
Read more about past interns' experiences here.
Stipend Information:
The Bill Lane Center will provide a base stipend of $7,500 with additional funding for student financial aid and cost of living adjustments for the internship location, if applicable.
Description of the Organization and the Internship:
Washington Water Trust is the leading streamflow restoration organization in Washington state. We seek partnerships and engage in flow restoration and sustainable water management practices/projects with landowners, tribes, state and local governments to match our mission.
Washington Water Trust is a non-regulatory, 501(c)(3) nonprofit leader in river and streamflow restoration. We use voluntary, market-based transactions and cooperative partnerships to develop solutions to meet our mission of improving flows in Washington’s most endangered rivers and streams. The intern joins a talented technical team whose members bring many years of experience in natural resource management, stream flow restoration, multi-stakeholder conservation projects, water banking and implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects.
Washington Water Trust (WWT) seeks an undergraduate intern with sound research, analytical, communication and outreach skills to help restore vital streamflow in Washington rivers and streams. Focus areas included: Recycled Water, Dry Farming, Water Rights Acquisition and Natural Systems Storage.
The intern will be engaged with WWT Project staff in several key project areas:
Water Rights Acquisition and Outreach: WWT is expanding our focus to include the Chehalis Basin, the second largest watershed wholly within Washington state.
The intern would support efforts to conduct water rights analysis (research, gis analysis, report writing), as well as develop, design and prioritize outreach to water right holders.
Recycled Water Source Switch: WWT has completed a 2-year study comparing the use of highly treated wastewater for irrigation in lieu of river water in the Sammamish Basin. In addition, we conducted two years of consumer outreach (surveys, presentations, focus groups) to evaluate the food supply chain willingness to buy crops grown with recycled water (very favorable).
The intern would support project staff to continue outreach to agricultural producers in this valley in a build-out feasibility study with King County. The intern would support development of recycled water demonstration projects on three identified farm properties.
Further, WWT is assessing the viability and costs of expanding Recycled Water services to other watersheds to supply irrigation needs (relieving freshwater diversion) with wastewater treatment facilities which discharge to the Puget Sound/Salish Sea. The intern would conduct research on target facilities, and help identify the cost for system modifications/upgrades.
Dry Farming: Low water use crops/practices which still yield sustainable farm income is an important strategy to restore flows and reduce the impact of irrigation withdrawals on the state's rivers and streams which already experience low flows.
WWT is collaborating with universities and other non-profits to diffuse the practice of dry-farming. A prime focus area is to identify the potential for wine vineyards to adopt dry farming practices.
The intern would work with project staff to research vinters in the Walla Walla region, identify existing water practices and help develop an outreach strategy to adopt dry farming practices.
Internship Work Environment:
This internship is hybrid: they are currently working in office 2-3 days/week with the balance from home. This is primarily an office-based position. Depending on public health conditions, there may be opportunities to engage in 16 hours of stream-monitoring, as well as 10-20 hours of in-person stakeholder meetings and/or public outreach.
The intern will be a part of the Western Project Team, which is comprised of Project Manager Hannah McDonough, Laura Garza Diaz, Stephen Lukas as well as Project Associate Stephanie Robinson. This dynamic and talented team heads up collaborative projects with tribes in the South Puget Sound region, the Recycled Water Project, the mitigation water bank the Dungeness Water Exchange. While this is the primary team, they also work with other organizations members.
Housing: Housing is not provided but some interns have been able to find housing at or near the University of Washington.
Need for a car: The intern would travel to any external field events with other staff. A car would not be necessary.
Location: Seattle, Washington
- Research, evaluate and prioritize water rights in target basins for acquisition. Complete Water Rights Assessment.
- Research the capacity and costs of upgrade/install Class A recycled water delivery system. Complete memo.
- Conduct outreach, develop outreach materials to farmers in Puget Sound/Salish and Walla Walla regions.
- Research, GIS mapping of Walla Walla Vineyards, engage dry farming experts. Complete memo.
- Streamflow monitoring. Work with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to measure streamflow in Rivers and Streams.
Bill Lane Center internships are part of Cardinal Quarter opportunities and students from all disciplines are encouraged to apply. The opportunities are full-time (35-40 hours a week) for 10 consecutive weeks during the summer. Specific start and end dates can be coordinated directly with the supervisor.
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 a research project or internship.
All undergraduates, including graduating seniors, are eligible. Coterms are eligible only if they hold undergraduate status.
For more helpful application advice, please visit the BLC’s FAQs page.
Application Guidelines for this Internship:
Preference will be given to rising juniors and seniors (current sophomores and juniors), however we will consider other years of students who can demonstrate experience with the subject matter.
All majors welcome but potential majors of interest include environmental sciences, geology, biology, earth systems, environmental systems engineering, science technology and society, sustainability.
Required Skills:
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MS Suite;
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Teams/Zoom;
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Familiarity with ARCGIS;
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Excellent written and spoken communications;
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Comfortable working in small and large group settings;
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Good research and time management skills;
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Familiarity with western water law;
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Interest and coursework in natural resource management;
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Interest in water resource management.
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This work is a combination of technical skill and social aptitude working with different parties to achieve natural resource gains.
Desired Skills:
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Washington water law;
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Water rights;
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Arcgis (this is preferred but not required)
Selection of applicants:
Complete applications are screened and finalists are contacted for an interview with staff from The Bill Lane Center for the American West. The top candidates for the position are forwarded to the organization for direct interviews with their potential supervisors and other staff.
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.
Once an applicant accepts an offer, they should promptly notify all other Stanford and non-Stanford programs to which they have applied that they have accepted another offer and withdraw their candidacy from those other opportunities.
