Internships

Gain valuable practical skills

Internships at Sunseed are a great opportunity to gain some hands-on experience within different areas of sustainability.

This ranges from agro-ecology, communication, ecosystem restoration, environmental education,

sustainable living skills or appropriate technology. We provide the space and support for self-driven education.

Our internships fall into two categories, General and Research internships.

Below you can find more information about them!

Our internships are typically funded by the Erasmus+ program as part of your university studies. Please check with your university's internships and mobility department if there are funds available to carry out your internship with us.

For funded interns we ask for 14€/day for accommodation and meals.

If you don't find funding for your internship we will ask for 12€/day.

Secure your Erasmus+ funds

1. Your university

Inquire if your university has available funds to finance your traineeship at Sunseed. If not, find and alternative funding.

Plan your internship

2. The research

After having read about our departments, select an internship model which corresponds with your wishes or share you ideas with us concerning a tailored program.

Apply

3. Your application

Prepare your CV and fill our application form. We will get back to you as soon as possible.

Enjoy your internship

4. The experience

Congratulations, you made it! We hope you will make most out of your traineeship!

General internships

Sunseed is a dynamic, inter-cultural group where each member contributes to the running of everyday life, taking on responsibilities to assure a supportive communal and low-impact environment. The ideal candidate for our internships would be comfortable with, or ready to explore, the balance between communal living, professional responsibilities, and environmental integrity.

Social Media

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: full-time

This position is a learning opportunity to gain valuable knowledge in the running of an established NGO, in working closely with different departments, and in off-grid, sustainable, community living. The Social Media Intern will join the Communication Coordinator.

Key tasks

Creating content for Sunseed´s social media platforms.
Managing social media profiles.
Producing Sunseed e-newsletters.
Coordinating blog writing with other departments.
Maintaining and developing Sunseed’s website and other web presence.
Ensuring all project documentation is up-to-date and consistent in style.
Ensuring that as much as possible Sunseed literature is in both English and Spanish.
Advertising the project cost-effectively.
Maintaining and building Sunseed’s relationships with local, national and international networks.

Requirements

Commitment to promoting low-impact living.
Initiative, creativity, imagination and sense of humor!

Good communication skills, writing and speaking.
Familiarity with social media platforms (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn).
Ability to work as part of a closely-integrated team with confidence, sensitivity, patience and open mindedness.
Good organizational abilities.
Ability to set targets, identify priorities and monitor progress.
Good spoken and written English.
Own laptop with software installed.

Desirable skills

Graphic design experience (PS / AI / IN)
Knowledge and experience of platforms such as Mailjet and WordPress
Social media, copywriting and digital communications experience a strong advantage
An understanding of organisational structures, particularly non-hierarchical organizations and those in the third sector.
A strong affinity with Sunseed’s vision and mission
Good spoken and written Spanish

Water harvesting in the desert

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: full-time

Research into methods of harvesting water: implementing precipitation catchment solutions, alongside water retention techniques, giving particular value to biomimicry and ancestral local knowledge. Work with the Dryland Restoration Department to ensure planting appropriate to water resources, aimed at improving soil quality and restoring local vegetation.

The intern will work closely with the Appropriate Technology Coordinator to ensure the educational potential of their responsibilities and overall experience are fulfilled.

Requirements:

Practical knowledge of water management/collection based on academic study, practical experience or a mixture of both.

Ability to work physically in a wide variety of weather conditions, including heat in summer and rain/cold in winter.

Experience in reporting of analysis and progress of project

Interest in low tech solutions/appropriate technologies

A strong affinity with Sunseed's vision and mission

Desirable skills:

Good level of English and Spanish

Experience in project management

Experience in community and rural life

Interest in ancestral knowledge based solutions

Ecosystem Restoration

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: Full-time

Sunseed is a non-formal education centre dedicated to sustainability, biodiversity and self-sufficiency. Through observation of natural ecosystems, we aim to understand the processes of desertification. We experiment with methods to combat land degradation, improve soil quality, restore the local vegetation, and implement innovative water management technologies. As an Intern at the Ecosystem Restoration department, you will work along the Coordinator.

Main responsibilities

Keep and extend our wild seed bank
Watering, weeding and propagating our native plants in the nursery
Mulching, watering and maintaining the arboretum
Making swales and digs for water retention system
Planting native trees and shrubs
Taking care of the fruit trees
Harvesting and foraging wild fruits and herbs

Essential

Ability to communicate well in English
Ability to work with others, encouraging contributions from people with less experience or knowledge
Tolerance of hard physical work in hot conditions.

Desirable

Ability to communicate well in Spanish
Computer literacy

Sunseed is a vibrant, inter-cultural community where each member contributes to the smooth running of everyday life, taking on responsibilities to assure a supportive communal environment. We are all part of this group, working closely with each other and respecting each other. The ideal candidate would be comfortable with, or ready to explore, this balance of community living, technical responsibilities, and personal life.

Graphic Design

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: full-time

This position is a learning opportunity to gain valuable knowledge in the running of an established NGO, in working closely with different departments, and in off-grid, sustainable, community living. The Graphic Design Intern will join the Communication and Education Coordinators.

Key tasks

Design clear engaging graphic communications for print and web. This will include communication brochures, direct mail pieces, web site and social media graphics, posters, flyers, presentations and other graphic materials as needed.
Adhere to brand guidelines and complete projects according to deadline.
Create and develop design concepts.
Assemble final presentation material for printing as needed.

Requirements

Commitment to promoting low-impact living.
Graphic Design major preferred.
Basic knowledge of layouts, typography, line composition, color, and other graphic design fundamentals.
Experience with InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, and Illustrator.
Strong creative and analytical skills.
Compelling portfolio of graphic design work

Initiative, creativity, imagination and sense of humor!

Good communication skills, writing and speaking.
Ability to work as part of a closely-integrated team with confidence, sensitivity, patience and open mindedness.
Good organizational abilities.
Ability to set targets, identify priorities and monitor progress.
Good spoken and written English.
Own laptop with software installed.

Desirable skills

Photography and video making and editing skills.
An understanding of organisational structures, particularly non-hierarchical organizations and those in the third sector.
A strong affinity with Sunseed’s vision and mission
Good spoken and written Spanish

Environmental Education

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: full-time

This position is a learning opportunity to gain valuable knowledge in creation and delivering of Environmental Education and Activism activities in our NGO along with our Education Coordinator. You will have the chance to get involved with other departments to create content and activities. Our aim is to spread environmental awareness at regional level (Almería province) and internationally through activities on site and online.

Key tasks

Design and develop environmental education activities for our School Activities Dossier.
Help to create educational content for our Online Education project.
Deliver workshops, presentations and activities along with the Education Coordinator.

Requirements

Commitment to promoting low-impact living.
Studies and/or experience on education and/or environmental education.
Basic knowledge of programming and delivering activities with children and young people.
Initiative, creativity and imagination.
Good communication skills, writing and speaking.
Ability to work as part of a closely-integrated team with confidence, sensitivity, patience and open mindedness.
Good organizational abilities.
Ability to set targets, identify priorities and monitor progress.
Good spoken and written English and Spanish.
Own laptop with software installed.

Desirable skills

Knowledge on online education
Photography and video making and editing skills.
An understanding of organizational structures, particularly non-hierarchical organizations and those in the third sector.
A strong affinity with Sunseed’s vision and mission

Organic Gardening and Sustainable Food Systems

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: full-time

Sunseed is a non-formal education centre located in the south of Spain, committed to low-impact, sustainable living. A significant part of Sunseed’s activities is centred around food growing, processing, preservation and preparation in order to ensure an environmentally-friendly, nutritious and balanced diet for the community. For this internship you will work together with the Sustainable Living team, in collaboration with our Organic Gardens Department.

As part of this internship, you will:

-Maintain garden beds using Sunseed’s weeding and mulching techniques

-Manage kitchen waste for compost to fertilise our soil

-Understand the process of food production at Sunseed - from planting and harvesting to cooking

-Prepare jams, preserves, fermented products and bread (products dependent on season)

-Utilise low-tech/sustainable kitchen technologies including our solar oven, hay-box and solar dryer

-Experiment and assist in the design of new vegan dishes and recipes

Required skills

-Interest in circular food systems and enthusiasm toward sustainable production

-Ability to communicate in English

-Ability to collaborate with others

-Interest in working within the context of an eco-community

-Capability to share ideas, techniques and experience in contributing to the project

-Ability to tolerate hard, physical work in the garden, at times in hot conditions

Desirable skills

-Knowledge of Spanish, or desire to learn

-Knowledge of organic gardening techniques based on academic study, practical experience or a mixture of both

-Previous experience working in kitchens or on organic farms

-Interest in expanding cooking techniques and abilities in the kitchen

Natural Health Products and Home Remedies

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: full-time

Sourcing and using the active ingredients found in many common plant species to treat a wide range of minor illnesses has been practiced for centuries and is simple, better for the environment and better for you!

Sunseed is a non-formal education centre located in the south of Spain, committed to low-impact, sustainable living. You will use Sunseed’s own medicinal garden to gain valuable skills in garden design, planting, maintenance, harvesting and processing medicinal plants (following permaculture principles). Materials sourced from the medicinal garden will then be used to manufacture home-made personal hygiene products (soaps, shampoos, conditioners and toothpowder), cosmetics (moisturisers, face creams, hand creams) and natural remedies (essential oils, medicinal balms, infusions and tinctures).

During this internship you will work together with the Sustainable Living team.

As part of this internship, you will:

-Maintain medicinal garden beds using Sunseed’s weeding and mulching techniques

-Research and source new species to help design an abundant and productive medicinal garden

-Understand how permaculture principles are applied to manufacture natural health products

-Master the process of making health products - from planting and harvesting to testing

-Prepare cosmetics, hygiene products and remedies (products dependent on season)

-Utilise low-tech/sustainable technologies, including solar oven, hay-box and solar dryer

-Experiment and assist in the preparation of new health products and remedies

Required skills

-Commitment to promoting and practicing low-impact, sustainable living

-Knowledge of permaculture techniques based on academic study, practical experience or a mixture of both

-Ability to communicate in English

-Ability to collaborate with others and encourage contributions from those with less

experience or knowledge

-Interest in working within the context of an eco-community

-Capability to share ideas, techniques and experience in contributing to the project

-Ability to tolerate physical work outdoors, at times in hot conditions

Desirable skills

-Knowledge of Spanish, or desire to learn

-A keen interest in natural health, remedial medicine and permaculture

-Previous experience sourcing and preparing natural products

-Previous gardening experience and knowledge of basic maintenance

-Some knowledge of common medicinal plant species and an ability to identify them

-A strong affinity with Sunseed’s vision and mission

Research internships

Bring your academic skills to the ground and conduct a community based research project with us! Here are some more specific investigation proposals that we would be thrilled for you to work on. These can be adjusted to personal research interests, while keeping in mind the objective of place-based and impact-bound knowledge creation. Research interns are expected to be self driven investigators.

Alternative technologies for refrigeration in semi-arid environments

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: full-time

Description:

Eco-friendly, low-cost refrigeration applications at the domestic level are an integral part of life in rural areas. Various solutions have been used throughout history to preserve products and the commonly used existing refrigeration systems have reached the maximum level of innovation, without any significant increase in their efficiency. Moreover, with the increasing awareness of environmental degradation, the production, use and disposal of chemicals as refrigerants in mechanical refrigeration systems has become a subject of great concern. Efforts are being directed to reinstate or develop alternative types of refrigeration technologies which are more eco-friendly, cost effective, efficient, simple in design, convenient and reliable.

The intern will work closely with the Appropriate Technology Coordinator to ensure the educational potential of their responsibilities and overall experience are fulfilled.

Requirements:

Skills/knowledge of thermodynamic principles

Ability to study and calculate the cooling rate and efficiency of a refrigerator.

Experience in reporting of analysis and progress of project

Interest in low tech solutions/appropriate technologies

Ability to use power tools.

Commitment to finish the project.

A strong affinity with Sunseed's vision and mission

Desirable skills:

Good level of English and Spanish

Experience in project management

Experience in community and rural life

Interest in ancestral knowledge based solutions

Growing and cultivating edible mushrooms and mycelia

Duration: 3 to 6 months

Commitment: full-time

This is a learning opportunity for someone wanting to experiment with and learn about cultivating mushrooms. The intern will work closely with the Gardens Coordinator to ensure the educational potential of her or his responsibilities and overall experience are fulfilled.

Core responsibilities

Growing and cultivating edible mushrooms and mycelia outdoors in a semi-arid environment, using a variety of regenerative ecological growing methods with mycelium, with the core aim of feeding the soil, plants and ourselves.
Mycoremediation and mycorestoration of the land, habitat restoration, mycolfiltration
Hands-on and visual research with companion planting, setting up and researching into the difference between garden beds with or without mycelium, recording tests and experiments using natural local materials.
Introducing mycellium into the gardens; exploring the symbiotic relationship between mycorrhizal fungi and plant roots for increased garden harvests and healthier soil; companion cultivation; benefits of mycological plantings.

Requirements

Practical knowledge of fungi and mycelium in academic study, practical experience or a mixture of both.
Good communication skills
A strong affinity with Sunseed's vision and mission
Ability to work physically in a wide variety of weather conditions, including hot in summer and rain/cold in winter.
Ability to self-organise and motivate the rest of the team.
Good spoken English

Desired

Level of Spanish
Previous experience in volunteering

Alternative Economies & Community Management

More than 90% of Sunseed’s income are donations and fees paid by volunteers, visitors, and people joining courses in the project. Covid gave a blow to this biggest income stream. As intern for alternative economies, sustainable business and community management you would explore how Sunseed’s income streams could be diversified. One of the biggest challenges for that is that no one in Sunseed is staying longer than two years, there are no long term people. Can a fully transient volunteer run community establish a balanced sustainable economy apart from hosting other volunteers and charging these money with it?

Tasks

– Work together with the office team in Sunseed

– Create literature review about business models of ecovillages

– Gather information about how Sunseed works and analyse it

– Find appropriate (academic) tools to create the report with (SWAT analyses, etc.)

– Give one presentation in two weeks to the whole community about progress in research to share the knowledge

– Produce report with recommendations to Sunseed

Required Skills

– Commitment to promoting low impact living

– Academic skills (research design, analyses, writing)

– Self directedness, dedication, motivation, creativity, flexibility, curiosity

– Interest in community based, transdisciplinarity, solution oriented applied research (going beyond normal sciences)

– Background in (alternative) economics, business, or management

– Understanding of accounting

– Proficient spoken and written English

Desirable Skills

– Experience in community Living

– Knowledge of the ecovillage world

– Proficient spoken and written Spanish

Decolonize Sunseed

Sunseed is a project located in the rural Souteast of Spain, in many ways the area can be seen as pocket of the Global South within the Global North. Sunseed started out as charity project from the UK and up to today, the main working language within the project is English, even though in our surroundings the dominant language is Spanish of course. In many ways Sunseed is a colony. One of the main objectives from the 1980s until the 2000s, was to research appropriate technologies for life in semi-arid regions in Sunseed to then export these knowledges to countries in the North of Africa. This focus has shifted, however, the vivid awareness about Sunseeds organizational history is fading. How to create a decolonial or anticolonial space out of Sunseed?

Tasks

– Write a literature review

– Analyse colonial, decolonial aspects of Sunseed

– Research strategies for decolonization of organizational spaces such as Sunseed

– Propose anticolonial guidelines in Sunseed

– Host a workshop about decolonization in Sunseed

Required Skills

– Commitment to promoting low impact living

– Academic skills (research design, analyses, writing)

– Self directedness, dedication, motivation, creativity, flexibility, curiosity

– Interest in community based, transdisciplinarity, solution oriented applied research (going beyond normal sciences)

– Knowledge about colonialism, decolonial and anticolonial bodies of thought

– Proficient spoken and written Spanish and English

Desired Skills

– Experience in community living

Natural cosmetics - Sustainable Living

The cosmetic industry continues to impact adversely the environment. The main problems remain non-recyclable packaging, exploitative practices of raw materials cultivation (e.g. monocrop oil palm plantations), and creating air and water pollution (both from mass production and non-biodegradable cosmetic ingredients environmental build-up). While the beauty industry continuously pushes to increase demand for highly specialized products, it also has to meet customer expectations of efficient and easy-to-apply cosmetics with a long expiration date, creating a vicious cycle of unsustainable practices. One of the possible answers is to produce small quantities of cosmetics for personal use with the raw materials available locally, combining the latest research into active ingredients and the ancestral knowledge of herbal medicine.

Tasks

– Work with Sustainable Living, Organic Gardens and Drylands teams

– Organize workshops on cosmetics for community members (possible topics: cosmetic industry impact on environment, certified organic cosmetics, cosmetics making at home, etc.)

– Conduct desk research on a chosen plant properties (using both scientific literature and spoken tradition of the region)

– Design formulation of a biodegradable and organic cosmetic product and a low-energy production process

– Collect herbal raw material (either from the medicinal garden or drylands)

– Prepare a cosmetic product

– Conduct safety tests and sensory evaluation

– Share the desk research findings and cosmetic formulation on Sunseed website

Expected learning outcomes

– Broadening knowledge on organic cosmetics and medicinal plants

– Gaining experience in independent cosmetic formulation

– Developing analytical, communication, time management and teamwork skills

Required skills

– Knowledge of cosmetic raw materials (understanding the difference between natural and organic ingredients, certified raw materials, biodegradability)

– Experience in cosmetic formulation and testing

– Interest in active ingredients of herbal origin

– Self-directedness and curiosity

– Intermediate Spanish or English

Desired skills

– Experience in community living

– Previous experience in medicinal gardens and/or foraging

Seed Saving

Agriculture is nowadays in the hands of a bunch of multinational corporations, controlling the food system in every step of the chain. Patenting seeds is one of the tools to have control over the farmers and peasants, increasing dependency from the products of these firms and promoting monocultures and GMO. As a project actively involved in food sovereignty and non formal education, we are looking for interns to come develop our local knowledge about saving and storing our own seeds, help us creating a proper seed bank and create some educational material to spread the voice about the importance of seed saving and local varieties.

Tasks

– Work with Organic Gardens and Drylands teams

– Researching techniques to save and store different seeds from different families

– Create a seed bank, collecting all the needed materials and designing its functionality

– Collect and store seeds from our plants, in the gardens and in the drylands

– Complete fertility tests on seeds samples to determine the germination rate.

– Develop a guide on “how to save and store seeds”

– Design educational material to raise awareness about the importance of seed saving

– Organise a workshop or event to present the results of the internship to the local community and to Sunseeders

– Keep the communication with our French partner Association Kokopelli

– Building bridges with other local initiatives involved in seed saving and growing local varieties.

Expected learning outcomes

– Broadening knowledge on seed saving and local varieties

– Gaining experience in drylands plants, seed storing and fertility tests

– Developing analytical, communication, time management and teamwork skills

Required skills

– Knowledge of basic plant science and physiology.

– Interest in food sovereignty, seeds, seed saving and local varieties

– Self-directedness and curiosity

– Intermediate Spanish or English

Desired skills

– Experience in community living

– Previous experience in gardening or seed saving projects

– Experience in non formal education and ability to organise events

Home Spices Production

In many ecoprojects food is a big topic: organic, local, plant based, vegan, many different options for a sustainable diet. But something common to many projects is a lot of delicious, homemade spiced food. We use so many spices to colour our dishes and make our communities happy. But where are our spices coming from? Are they sustainable? Are we aware of the origins of our spices? And what if we had to produce them ourselves? We are looking for an intern willing to research about the possibilities to produce our own spices on a small scale, providing our community with the spices we need at the same time as we take care of the planet and measure the limits of “what can we actually self produce?”.

Tasks

– Work with Organic Gardens team

– Design the planning for the spices project, undertaking the needs of the community members as well as the resources of our landscape and infrastructure.

– Researching techniques to grow different spices in our gardens and greenhouses

– Order organic and, if possible, local seeds for spices plants from local providers

– Seed the spices plant and follow their growth, documenting and collecting information about the experiment

– Develop a guide on “how to grow your own spices”

– Organise a workshop or event to present the results of the internship to the local community and to Sunseeders

– Harvesting and processing spices, creating mixes and storing them.

Expected learning outcomes

– Broadening knowledge on vegetable growing and spices production.

– Gaining experience in sowing, growing, harvesting and processing spices plants

– Developing analytical, communication, time management and teamwork skills

Required skills

– Knowledge of basic plant science and physiology

– Interest in food sovereignty and sustainable food chain

– Self-directedness and curiosity

– Intermediate Spanish or English

Desired skills

– Experience in community living

– Previous experience in gardening

– Experience in non formal education and ability to organise events

Take a look at the internships we have available,

complete and submit the application form below!

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