We are looking for an intern to join our Nature-based Solutions team.

Ecosystem restoration has the potential to deliver a wide range of benefits, from conserving biodiversity and supporting sustainable development to acting as a nature-based solution for climate change mitigation and/or adaptation. 

In marine and coastal contexts, restoration can play a critical role in addressing the climate crisis—not only by enhancing biodiversity and ecosystem health but also through the carbon sequestration and storage capacities of specific habitats. However, the extent of these climate mitigation benefits remains underexplored, particularly when compared to terrestrial systems. Generating robust, context-specific evidence is essential to unlock the full value of seascape restoration and to guide effective policy and investment.

The Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme (ELSP) has recently embarked on an ambitious journey to shape the future of Europe’s seas. By restoring nearly 3 million hectares across seven of the most ecologically important seascapes in the region, the ELSP aims to recover ecosystem functions and processes, improve habitat quality, and promote long-term ecological resilience. As part of this mission, the ELSP is committed to advancing its understanding of the climate change mitigation potential provided by its marine and coastal restoration projects. Its long-term goal is to generate evidence that informs and inspires further seascape restoration efforts.

A critical first step in this direction is to identify and evaluate methods for measuring the climate change mitigation benefits of marine and coastal restoration. This is especially important given the current uncertainties around carbon dynamics in coastal and marine ecosystems, including variability in carbon sequestration and storage rates between different habitat types (such as seagrasses and saltmarshes), limited long-term data on carbon fluxes and accumulation, and gaps in understanding how specific restoration actions influence these processes.

This internship will contribute to the ELSP’s efforts to better understand and communicate the climate change mitigation potential of coastal and marine restoration. By synthesising existing knowledge on available methods, tools, and data, the intern will help identify key gaps, limitations, and opportunities to strengthen future assessment approaches.

This position is not suitable for visa sponsorship.

To view the Job Pack for this role, please view the following link: ITN111 Job Pack.pdf

This is not a United Nations Post. This position is with the charity WCMC, working in collaboration with UNEP.

Please note we reserve the right to close this position as soon as a suitable applicant is found, so please do not delay your application.