Out West student blog

Western Summer Interns Head Off Into the Field

Top row, from left: Julia Anderson, Juliana Chang, Zac Espinosa, Alessandro (Sandro) Hall, Tish Johnston; Middle row: Nate Marshall, Catie Mong, Jamie Rodriguez, Amelia Shin-May Traylor, Miranda Vogt; Bottom row: Ignacio Mendez, Karen Huynh, Max Vilgalys, Anthony Ho, Yiyuan Zhang

 


 

With spring quarter and commencement behind us, the Center’s interns are heading out to begin their adventures across the West as part of the university’s Cardinal Quarter initiative. This year, we are supporting 15 extraordinary undergraduates, co-terms, and graduate students, who will be spending the summer at national parks, nature conservancies, nongovernmental organizations, state regulatory agencies and research institutes. They range from Computer Science and Mechanical Engineering majors to ardent equestrians and students of Art History and 17th-century poetry.

As the summer goes on, they will share their experiences and perspectives on our Out West student blog, which will also feature dispatches from the Stanford Energy Internships in California and Colorado, a program we cosponsor with the Stanford Precourt Institute for Energy. You can also read more our interns and their interests by clicking the links below. For now, please join us in wishing them an unforgettable summer.

2017 Interns in the West

Intern Topic Organization
Julia Anderson Alcatraz Island Cultural Resources Intern Golden Gate National Recreation Area
Juliana Chang Events and Marketing Intern Heyday Publishing
Catie Mong Conservation Ecology Field Assistant Santa Lucia Conservancy
Miranda Vogt Resilient Landscapes Program Intern San Francisco Estuary Institute
Tish Johnston Museum Intern Yosemite National Park
Nate Marshall Community Conservation Program Intern Trust for Public Land
Zac Espinosa Environmental Modeling Intern Henry’s Fork Foundation
Jamie Rodriguez Elections Intern National Conference of State Legislatures
Amelia Shin-May Traylor Curatorial Intern Yellowstone National Park Heritage and Research Center
Alessandro (Sandro) Hall Archaeology Program Intern Yellowstone National Park

 

2017 Energy Interns in California and Colorado

In addition to our 10 interns in the American West, the Center is pleased to sponsor five Stanford Energy Interns in California and Colorado (SEIC). Now in its second year, SEIC places Stanford undergraduate and graduate students in energy-related public service internships through the West. The program seeks to:

  • Provide Stanford students interested in energy an avenue to participate in a substantive and paid internship with energy-related California government organizations.
  • Provide California’s agencies with Stanford’s top students and resources.
  • Promote the spirit of public service to Stanford students and encourage them to consider public policy positions after graduation.
  • Educate students about the wide range of career opportunities available in state government for energy-related jobs.
  • Increase connections between Stanford faculty and researchers and California agencies.

In 2017, the Center is proud to sponsor three Stanford undergraduates and two graduate students who will spend the summer exploring the intersection of energy and policy in the West. Learn more about our fellows:

Intern Topic Organization
Ignacio Mendez Undergraduate Internship with Commissioner David Hochschild California Energy Commission
Karen Huynh Undergraduate Internship California Independent System Operator
Max Vilgalys Undergraduate Internship Western Interstate Energy Board
Anthony Ho Graduate Internship with Commissioner Andrew McAllister California Energy Commission
Yiyuan Zhang Graduate Internship Department of Water Resources

 

This summer, follow our interns’ activities on the Out West student blog. During the summer quarter, Center's interns and Research Assistants will be sending in virtual postcards, snapshots and reports on their work at organizations thoughout the West.

Learn more about our summer internships

Recent Center News

A keystone species slowly disappears from the Yukon; Cuyama Valley, California farmers boycott Big Carrot; a pond turns pink in Maui; environmentalists oppose an Alaskan Arctic oil drilling project; direct-air carbon capture arrives in the Central Valley; pikas return to the Columbia Gorge; and other environmental news from around the American West.
Advisory Council Member Nancy Pfund and colleagues author a new paper exploring the benefits of prescribed burns, highlighting how new technologies in wildfire mitigation, vegetation management, and forestry can help prevent catastrophic fire. The paper also investigates how a variety of innovative funding models could be harnessed to dramatically scale the ability to use prescribed burns safely and effectively in the future.

Photo courtesy of Brandon Kapelow

Every year, the Bill Lane Center awards a $5,000 fellowship to support a journalist illuminating crucial issues about the American West. We are proud to announce Brandon Kapelow as our 2023-2024 Western Media Fellow, and the publication of new work by last year's fellow, Janet Wilson.