Starting My Journey as a Green Camps Intern: Making Camps More Sustainable

As a College Student, I’m Excited to Help Camps Go Green

Hi everyone! My name is Mang Iang, and I’m the Campus to Camps Intern at Green Camps. I’m currently a senior at UNC Chapel Hill, where I’m pursuing a degree in Environmental Health Sciences with a minor in Environmental Justice. Growing up, camp was a huge part of my life—it’s where I developed essential life skills and discovered my passion for the environment. So, when I heard about Green Camps through EcoStudio, UNC Chapel Hill’s internship program, I knew this was the perfect opportunity to make a difference.

Why Campus to Camps?

The Campus to Camps internship program pairs university students like me with camps, helping them achieve Green Camps Certification. It’s an amazing opportunity to apply what I’ve learned in school to real-world sustainability challenges, especially in an environment that means so much to me. I get to help camps reduce their environmental footprint and show campers how to be stewards of the earth. What could be better than that?

One of my main goals is to support a camp in completing the Green Camps Certification program. I will be collaborating with camp staff, gathering important documentation, and working on implementing sustainable practices to meet certification standards. Along the way, I also get to share success stories, reach out to other camps, and offer one-on-one consulting support.

Bringing Global Health and Water Policy to Camps

My academic focus has been on the intersection of global health and water policy, so I’m especially excited to integrate that knowledge into my work with Green Camps. At UNC, I’ve been working at the Water Institute, where we assess global water infrastructure and management. I’m looking forward to applying this expertise to camp settings, especially in managing water resources more sustainably. It’s incredible to see how these big ideas can be implemented on a practical level in the camp world!

What I’m Learning Along the Way

This internship is not only allows me to work on sustainability but will also teach me a lot about project management and communications. I’ll be involved in creating social media posts, blog articles, and even presenting at webinars and other camp events. It will be a great way to share the impact of my work and help spread the word about the incredible resources Green Camps offers. I’ll also learn about the unique challenges camps face when going green and how Green Camps’ certification process can help overcome them.

The Road Ahead

Right now, I’m actively working to connect with a camp to help them complete the Green Camps Certification. In addition to certification support, I’m also focusing on outreach, sharing success stories, and helping other camps discover how they can become more sustainable. We already have some great leads, but if any camps are interested in participating or if other college students want to get involved, you can learn more and submit your interest on the Campus to Camps page. I’m excited to see where this journey takes us and the positive impact we can make together!

Stay Tuned!

I’ll be sharing more about my journey through blog posts and social media updates, so make sure to follow along for insights into how we’re helping camps go green!

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