Support Mentoring Initiatives | UC Santa Barbara - Bren School of Environmental Science & Management

There are multiple ways to engage and support the Bren Environmental Leadership (BEL) program!

Partnering with the BEL Program connects your organization to a pipeline of high-achieving, diverse, talent ready students to solve complex environmental challenges. Unlike traditional internships, BEL provides a cohesive two-person team: a skilled Bren graduate student who provides project management, and a dedicated undergraduate fellow eager to execute applied research. This unique structure ensures your organization receives rigorous, actionable deliverables—ranging from ESG assessments to field data analysis—while saving your organization time. By funding or hosting a BEL team, you not only advance your organization’s immediate strategic goals but also play a critical role in helping to launch the careers of the next generation of innovative, diverse environmental leaders.

Supporting the BEL program means investing in a model with layered impact. Partner support enables internships, leadership development for graduate students, professional and educational pathways for undergraduates and high school students, and applied research for conservation and sustainability partners. Together, these investments help cultivate the next generation of environmental leaders while advancing solutions to pressing real-world challenges.

For more information, please contact: Assistant Dean, Partnerships & Development, Dr. Lotus Vermeer at lvermeer@ucsb.edu

Alumni Stories

A Nutty Solution: Lessons from an Acorn

Field-based environmental education at the Dangermond Preserve shows how hands-on learning builds scientific intuition, making ecology and science more accessible through observation, inquiry, and real-world experience.

Sunlight streams through clear blue ocean water above a vibrant coral reef, where dozens of small, colorful fish swim over branching corals in shades of tan, purple, and pink.

From Classroom to Boardroom: How the BEL Fellowship Builds Leaders and Solves Real-World Problems

The BEL Fellowship pairs UCSB Bren graduate students with undergraduates on paid sustainability internships, combining peer mentorship, career training, and real-world environmental problem-solving with mission-driven partner organizations.

Yang Hu ‘24, BEL Fellow, Mathematics & Data Science

Catalyzing the Careers of Students in the Environmental Field

Learn more about how you can support the Bren Environmental Leadership (BEL) Program. This leadership development program for undergraduates facing adverse circumstances is developed to improve professional outcomes and fostering growth in the field of environmental science.

Building Environmental Leaders Together

Bren School's Environmental Leadership program partners with Youth Conservation Corps to transform first-generation students' futures through hands-on Santa Cruz Island restoration work, mentorship from PhD students, and exposure to environmental careers previously beyond their imagination.