End of Internship Blog

How I Got Here

Hello! My name is Kate Albertus, and I am one of the 2024 UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County interns. My position is Environmental Education and Outreach Intern, specifically for the Sustainability team. While a blog describing everything I was involved in over the summer would be too long for anyone to read, I’ll make sure to include the highlights from this amazing internship program. I found this internship through LinkedIn jobs, and the thoroughness and organization of the interview process really foreshadowed the effort and care that these supervisors put into their programs and intern duties.

Internship at UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County

Community Outreach

A significant portion of my internship involved community outreach, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I helped with many tabling events, including extreme heat pop-ups with the Sustainability Outreach Coordinator, Alia, and energy efficiency education with the Energy Program Specialist, Devin.

During our extreme heat pop-up events, we displayed the results of a NASA study that identified North Port, Newtown, and Venice as heat hotspots in Sarasota County. We educated community members on the dangers of extreme heat and how to stay safe and prevent heat illness. Our extreme heat pop-up tables featured cooling merchandise, including cooling towels, freezer packs, and collapsible fans. Community members were able to take these items home, along with resources that provided more information.

 

 

 

At our energy upgrade tabling events, we educated people on how to save on their energy and water bills. We distributed energy efficiency coloring storybooks and stickers to the kids, as well as LED light bulbs and low-flow showerheads to the adults.

Grants

Another significant part of my internship involved working with various grants, specifically the Climate Pollution Reduction Grant and the Resilient Florida Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Plan. This was my first time working on the policy side of environmental studies and sustainability, and it was fascinating to learn about the behind-the-scenes work that goes into grant funding and project management. With these grants, I sat in on meetings, took notes, communicated with stakeholders, helped organize community meetings, and communicated with concerned citizens about the grant projects.

Green Champions & Stellar Award

I also helped with the internal promotion of sustainability employee programs within Sarasota County. The Green Champions program is a series of educational training courses available to Sarasota County employees to teach them more about living sustainably, both at work and at home. Participation in this program has been low recently, so I worked on tracking program completion, reaching out to those in progress of completing their certification and encouraging them to finish, and general marketing and promotion of the program across county outlets. Another program I worked on was the Stellar Award for Sustainability, which recognizes any county employee who goes above and beyond to initiate a sustainable project or action. I helped promote and market this award by creating graphics, articles, and posters for employee viewing.

Sustainable Communities Workshop

The Sustainable Communities Workshop is an event that brings together community members, businesses, and organizations, to promote sustainable well-being within our community. There are so many things that go into planning an event this big. I have helped with planning committee meetings, social media content planning, and graphic design to promote this event.

4-H Exploring Your Environment Summer Camp

During June, the Extension Office hosted its weeklong 4-H summer camp. I led a sustainable fashion lesson and upcycling activity where I taught the kids how to make a no-sew tote bag out of thrifted T-shirts. During our daily field trips to multiple state and county parks, I led some nature interpretation talks. Throughout the week, I helped where needed and enjoyed learning and interacting with the kids, which was my favorite part of the whole camp.

Communications

Throughout my internship, I worked on many different communication-based tasks. This included writing three blogs: World Environment Day, Sustainable 4th of July, and this End of Internship Recap. I also became proficient in Canva, creating numerous graphics for different programs and updating program presentations. I was also in constant communication with other departments, businesses, and professionals to learn more about their career paths and seek advice as a young college student looking for environmental work.

Energy Upgrade

The Energy Upgrade program was something I assisted with throughout the summer. As mentioned previously, this included tabling at community events.

It also involved energy upgrade sweeps where we traveled to the Sarasota Housing Authority to switch out LED light bulbs, faucet aerators, showerheads, air filters, and more to help underserved families save money on their utility bills.

These families were extremely thankful and eager to learn more about ways to save money and reduce their energy consumption, making the experience very fulfilling. I also assisted with adding new program activities and lesson plans that  will be used at future events.

 

 

Professional Development Intern Cohort Days

One unique aspect of this internship opportunity was the involvement of interns across Sarasota County departments. This summer, there were 51 interns across 16 different departments. Every two weeks, all interns would convene for an all-day professional development event. The topics ranged from a trolley tour viewing all county facilities to a networking and etiquette workshop, with all topics focused on preparing the interns for their professional careers. These professional development days were well thought out, extremely organized, and highly beneficial for the entire intern cohort.

Takeaways

One of the biggest takeaways from this internship was realizing that there are positions and careers out there that focus on all my interests. Before this internship, I thought there was usually a tradeoff between caring for the environment and focusing on community needs and equity. This position has shown me that these things can exist together—and should.

The biggest learning curve I experienced during this internship was figuring out the procedural ways of doing things in local government. There are specific methods for completing tasks, and my team was instrumental in helping me navigate this learning experience.

Another important lesson I am taking away from this internship is that working with other departments and divisions is just as important as working within your own. Connections and communication are key.

This internship solidified my desire to work in the sustainability/environmental field, and it reaffirmed my wish to find a career that truly helps people and the planet. As I continue in my future endeavors, I will look back on this internship and the lessons I have learned to guide me.

Apply for a Summer 2025 Internship!

In conclusion, I encourage anyone interested in Extension work, or any work done by Sarasota County, to apply for these internships. I cannot recommend this program enough! If you have a passion for sustainability or environmental work, this internship is a great opportunity to explore. As mentioned previously, this internship is incredibly well organized, and the professionals involved in the program truly care about the interns’ well-being and success, both during the internship and beyond. This internship was a unique experience, and I am personally so glad I decided to step out of my comfort zone to come down to Sarasota for the summer.

 

Learn more below!

Sarasota County Intern Program

UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County Sustainability