EVERYTHING THERE IS TO KNOW ABOUT A CRF™ INTERNSHIP
We are helping to nurture tomorrow’s leading marine scientists. We offer vocational training to university-level interns, providing them with a structured learning environment and the opportunity to contribute on a professional level to a growing non-profit. CRF™ interns can expect to be challenged, mentored, and inspired as they work closely with our dynamic team all of whom are dedicated to helping our interns grow, succeed, and find their focus. So what exactly does it mean to be a CRF™ intern?
Coral Restoration Foundation™ interns learn skills and create memories during their time with us. ©Coral Restoration Foundation™
CRF™ focuses on three pillars to support our mission. They include restoration, science, and education. During a CRF™ internship you can expect to be fully immersed in all three of these topics, gaining skills that will set you up for a successful career in a variety of areas!
Interns are immersed in coral restoration, education, and science at CRF™ ©Coral Restoration Foundation™
Our intern training program includes a Scientific Diver accreditation and the opportunity to care for endangered species of corals, maintain open ocean coral nurseries, propagate multiple coral species, and outplant them on the reef. In 2021 our interns were responsible for returning 17,831 corals to the wild!
Interns train with our Restoration Program team members in daily, hands-on, real-world fieldwork. They SCUBA dive multiple times a day in our coral nurseries and on the reef, learn to assess the health and growth of the corals in our care, actively propagate and harvest corals through fragmentation, and perfect their restoration techniques by returning 4 different species to the reef with their own two hands.
Many of our interns are excited to explore the science behind coral restoration and they are actively involved in collecting photomosaic data and monitoring coral health. Our Science Program Manager and Photomosaic and Technology Coordinator work directly with each of our interns to teach them the entire photomosaic monitoring process and train them to assist in the analysis. Some interns even make it to the level of capturing photomosaics in the field while others focus more on observational data analysis including tracking survivorship, disease presence, bleaching events, and best of all growth!
After learning so much about coral restoration and ecology, our interns are itching to share their knowledge. Our Education Program Manager and Dive Training Administrator train our interns in science communication and general educational techniques which allow them to succeed when they are leading public recreational dive programs and other outreach events!
Our year-round public dive programs, set up in collaboration with local SCUBA operators, have made it incredibly easy for recreational scuba divers and snorkelers to experience a day of coral restoration. Our interns are trained to guide these programs, giving the public a change to engage with some promising young marine scientists and giving our interns the chance to engage with and empower others with the skills they have learned during their time at CRF™. In 2021 we welcomed over 950 recreational divers and snorkelers to 140 dive programs. The participants of these programs returned over 2,400 corals to the wild with the leadership of our interns! Many of our interns find dive programs to be the measurement of their success. They know they have grown tremendously when they can pass their knowledge onto others.
CRF™ intern Lindsey teaches a uniquely young public dive program participant about staghorn corals on their way to return them to the wild. ©Coral Restoration Foundation™
CRF™ internships operate on a 4 month term with opportunities to stay on and progress for a full year. If you are interested in applying visit coralrestoration.org/internships
Written by:
Coral Chronicles Editor
Madalen Howard is CRF's Marketing Associate. Madalen comes to CRF™ via a winding road from the Tennessee hills, to the South Carolina low country, ending here in Florida’s Coral Reef. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Marine Biology and a Minor in Environmental Studies from the College of Charleston in 2016. Her experience ranges from field research to education, and communications.
Madalen spent the last 4 years as a Field Instructor and Social Media Strategist for MarineLab Environmental Education Center. Here she was able to study and teach marine ecology, while snorkeling through mangroves, seagrasses, and coral reefs every day. While at MarineLab she combined her education and research background, entered the world of communications, and developed MarineLab’s social media department from the ground up.
Throughout her life Madalen has had a skill connecting people with nature. With CRF™, she is excited to bring people into the world of coral restoration, creating inclusive pathways to scientific discovery.