Catalyzing the Careers of Students in the Environmental Field

THE BREN ENVIRONMENTAL LEADERS (BEL) Program supports and advances the careers of graduate and undergraduate Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), individuals experiencing low-income, and first generation students, preparing them for leadership and success in the environmental field and the natural sciences. 

The program provides fellowship support, networking, and training opportunities for BEL Fellows, through connection with learning communities, career skills workshops, and paired internships. 

BEL Fellows work in pairs – an undergraduate with a Bren graduate student mentor – and gain experience either through an internship with an environmental organization, or by assisting in academic research. Fellows gain vital tools to launch successful careers, including access to professional networks and skill building. Graduate mentors benefit from building valuable management and training competencies. Fellows placed with partner organizations build their resumes, and help bring much-needed diverse perspectives and experiences to the environmental field. 

BEL Fellowships are more than just summer internships – they advance students’ professional and research qualifications, and provide them with experience and networks to advance in their careers and become competitive candidates for top graduate schools. 

Employers benefit by bringing on-board talented and high achieving students who are mentored by Bren graduate students. Employers also play an important role in helping launch the careers of BEL Fellows, helping bring more innovative leaders of color into the environmental field. 

We are currently seeking paid internship opportunities for placement of our paired students for this summer with partner organizations. 

Student Selection Criteria

The BEL Program selects Fellows based on:

• Excellence in environmental science: Students must demonstrate academic excellence and a high potential for sustained achievement.
• Direct application to environmental problem solving: Students must demonstrate a skill set and background that translates to tackling applied environmental or ecological research challenges.
• Enhance diversity in the environmental sciences: Students must share how their unique perspective and experiences shape the environmental work that they hope to accomplish. Undergraduate applicants must be BIPOC, experiencing low income and/or first generation to qualify.

All applicants must be current UCSB undergraduate students or Bren graduate students.

DEI Commitment

Job markets and academic communities in environmental science have historically been biased toward certain privileged groups regarding race, gender, socioeconomic status, and mental and physical abilities. Since BIPOC individuals and communities with low-income face a disproportionate amount of environmental harm and face significant barriers, we must work to dismantle systemic racism by expanding access, representation, sharing power, and ensuring all voices and experiences are heard and addressed. 

UC Santa Barbara and the Bren School value diversity, equity, and inclusion as critical to the environmental field, to our mission, and to the success of our students. The Bren School also strives to make space for and support more BIPOC leaders in the environmental field. We are committed to being a vibrant, inclusive, and respectful community where the diversity of our students, staff, and faculty amplifies our ability to identify and solve environmental problems.

Background

UC Santa Barbara is ranked as one of the top U.S. public universities and is considered by many to be the birthplace of modern environmentalism (“How an Oil Spill Inspired the First Earth Day”, Smithsonian Magazine 2019). Our legacy of environmental leadership now extends to include training the next generation of environmental problem solvers and advancing research that tackles complex global challenges. 

The Bren School of Environmental Science & Management is a graduate program that promotes interdisciplinary and innovative solutions to environmental problems through research and teaching. In just 27 years, the Bren School has achieved a worldwide reputation as a trusted training institution for innovative environmental thinkers and leaders.

Our pioneering Environmental Studies program is one of the largest and most successful of its kind. This undergraduate program helps students develop the skills, confidence, creativity, and self-empowerment to positively impact people and the planet. 

Conveniently housed under the same roof, both these programs emphasize the practical problem-solving skills and interdisciplinary perspectives needed to elicit tangible change in the environmental sector.