At the Forest Society we believe in investing in the future.  Providing college students and recent graduates with high quality employment experiences in the conservation field is important, so that they can get started in what will hopefully be long and productive careers.  We were all the beginning of our careers at one point, and offering inspiring and substantive internships is a way to pay it forward for the future of New Hampshire and the future of land conservation.  In fact, we believe that investing in young minds helps the Forest Society be more innovative and inspires creativity and growth in all of our staff and departments.  We eagerly invite this exchange of ideas and information each summer by supporting 5-10 internships across our organization. 

Some of the internships commonly offered at the Forest Society include opportunities in environmental education and visitor outreach, trail and property stewardship, forestry, business administration, communications and media, and development.  The specific opportunities may change each year, but interns are typically invited to participate in staff events and field days, department meetings, and summer stewardship workdays (such as Monadnock Trails Week) as their schedules allow.  There are also opportunities to shadow staff members with jobs of specific interest to the intern.  If you are looking to get a jump start on your conservation career working in a fun and supportive environment, consider a Forest Society summer internship.

Expected Summer 2021 Internships*                                                     

• Grafton Pond Rangers (Grafton, NH) – Provide visitor outreach to paddlers at Grafton Pond about invasive aquatic weeds, threatened loon populations, packing out trash, and responsible recreation.  Stewardship of shoreline, islands, and two trails (via kayak and on foot), monitoring trailhead kiosk and infrastructure.  
• Mount Major Trail Stewards (Alton, NH) -  Visitor outreach to hikers at Mount Major, conveying information about responsible recreation, Leave No Trace principles, and answering visitor questions.  Stewardship of trails and trailhead infrastructure.  Monitoring visitor usage.   
• Floodplain Rangers (Concord, NH) -  Provide outreach to visitors to our popular Merrimack River Outdoor Education & Conservation Area, aka “the floodplain,” in Concord.  Support recreation use guidelines and perform property and trails stewardship and maintenance tasks.  Create and post social media content about the floodplain and responsible recreational use.  
• Outreach/GIS Intern (Concord, NH) – Develop 1-2 StoryMaps using ArcGIS online to highlight Forest Society program success.  Collect data and develop content for our mobile trails app, Forest Explorer.  Assist with development of outreach media content, including website pages, blog posts, social media, and e-newsletters.  Assist with outreach events including hikes, school programs, and volunteer stewardship workdays.   
• Development Intern (Concord, NH) – Assist Development Department with advancement of our Business Sponsorship program, via development of social media plans, database mining, outreach events, and survey development.   
• Forestry & Stewardship Technician (Concord and various conservation properties across NH) – Conduct maintenance of boundary lines on forest reservations across New Hampshire.  Work with staff and volunteers on property stewardship, forestry, and trails projects.  Perform post-harvest surveys to measure regeneration, snags and downed woody debris.   

*These listings are subject to change depending on funding resources and COVID-19 situation.  All internships will be posted on our EMPLOYMENT PAGE when officially open for application.  Many of our seasonal internships are also open to non-students, retirees, and those just considering a switch to a conservation career.  For more information about the Forest Society’s internship program in general, please contact Carrie Deegan, Volunteer & Community Engagement Manager at cdeegan@forestsociety.org or 603-224-9945.