Join Intern Abroad HQ, the world’s most affordable international internship organization, and invest in your future with an Environmental Research & Conservation Internship in Greece.
 
Islands of the Aegean Sea region are home to important ecosystems and species. To implement and monitor effective conservation measures, researchers require a sound understanding of local biodiversity, species diversity, and animal behavior. Environmental Research & Conservation interns can join year-round projects, dedicated to ongoing efforts to improve insights into ecology. Come prepared to collect data and contribute to developing conservation strategies.

This program offers durations of 8-24 weeks from April through October and 4-24 weeks from November through March. Start dates are available every first and third Monday throughout the year.

Your fully-hosted experience includes sourcing of your internship placement, personalization of your project plan, airport pick-up, orientation, accommodation, meals, and onsite student support. See our full list of fees and inclusions on our website.
 
Suitable for students, graduates and researchers of ecological and environmental sciences, or a related field. Applicants must be able to contribute both independently and as part of a dynamic, multicultural, multidisciplinary team. Technical skills such as data entry, statistical analysis, knowledge of the environment, and experience with scientific surveying are preferred.

This internship is conducted in English.
 
Environmental Research & Conservation interns collaborate with an experienced Marine Conservation NGO, operating in Samos, Greece. Samos is home to incredibly important but rare species, such as the Mediterranean chameleon, golden jackals, the Balkan pond terrapin, the critically-endangered European eel, and many protected bird species. However, current management and conservation measures can neglect to capture their best interests. Interns contribute to ongoing research and data collection, assisting to enhance understanding and progress essential conservation efforts.

Interns will contribute to the year-round effort to protect the ecosystems found on Samos island, while raising conservation awareness and collaborating with the local community. Conduct research and gather key data into protected, rare, and endangered ecosystems, where many species still remain largely understudied; understand changes that can be implemented by the authorities at the national and international level in order to make conservation efforts more effective; and gain insight into the most efficient protection and management practices.

Interns may support the program in either a general role - collaborating on current research topics - or in a more specialized role, where you have time and scope to contribute to one pre-defined project. Additionally, interns often enjoy scope to become involved with a range of alternative opportunities, whether related to environmental awareness campaigns, public relations, education initiatives within the community, and more.

Depending on your goals and academic level, proactive participants can collect data for independent research purposes, or simply take the learning opportunity to broadly increase important conservation skill sets. There can be a large intern-to-supervisor ratio on this program, so interns with specific research goals should come prepared with ideas. Examples of key projects include:

• Monitoring of mammals to gain behavior and ecology insights. E.g. golden jackal, wild boar, beech martens, and weasels. Field-based studies can use camera traps and acoustic methods.
• Gathering biodiversity data on birds and macroinvertebrates in salt marsh habitats.
• Using visual observations to assess biodiversity and monitor abundances of reptiles, amphibians and insects. E.g. chameleons, Caspian whip snakes, Balkan terrapins, tree frogs, dragonflies, butterflies, moths, beetles, etc.
• Monitoring protected and/or migratory bird species: behavior, distribution, abundance, and migration patterns. E.g various owl species, flamingo, ruddy shelduck, Eleonora’s falcon, Audouin’s gull, etc.

Conservation operations and internships run year-round and a flexible mentality is required. Activities can vary as all field work is subject to weather conditions, especially in winter months. In all cases, come prepared to assist with office/admin based activities, in addition to hands-on fieldwork. All tasks related to data collection and data analysis in the field require follow up work on a computer, which is an essential aspect of research and scientific progression. Prior to participating on certain surveys, all interns are required to complete theoretical training/preparation tasks related to species identification, data sheets, etc.

Interns should expect that the first week of your experience will focus on settling in, building new relationships, gaining introductory and foundational knowledge. Being able to balance the motivation to get stuck in as soon as possible must be balanced with teamwork, patience, the willingness to try new things, achieve learning milestones, and ask questions as you progress.

You might find yourself using equipment to collect and analyze data, using software and other methods, which are all new to you - however, this can greatly benefit your future career, as it adds so much more practical experience to your resume! A commitment to responsible communication and self-management is required. Supervisors will assign tasks and projects but interns are required to organize and put suitable timelines in place for achieving the best outcome.
 
Intern Abroad HQ's Greece programs are available year-round, with start dates every first and third Monday.

Intern Abroad HQ provides the most affordable and top-rated programs. Check out our intern reviews on our website.

We match you with innovative and entrepreneurial host organizations around the world that give you the opportunity to make a real contribution on high-impact projects with the support of travel experts with an outstanding safety system and track record.

Our experiential learning approach provides a structured and guided platform for you to think critically about your experiences on your internship. It accelerates and deepens your learning by asking self-reflective questions around the contexts, actions, and outcomes of your placement.

Academic credit is available for all experiences, through our School of Record partnerships with University of Montana (1-5 credits) and Warren Wilson College (6-16 credits). Check in with your academic advisor to understand if you can apply these transfer credits toward your degree at your home institution.

We offer flexible booking and free changes so you can register with confidence.
 
Apply for free: Complete an online application form via the Intern Abroad HQ website.

• Select your start date and duration: All Intern Abroad HQ programs are available year-round and you can choose to intern for durations on this program ranging from 4 to 24 weeks.
• Complete your registration: After you have been accepted on your chosen program, you can secure your place by paying the Deposit.
• Pay your Balance: This is due 60 days before your program starts.

Need to make changes to your booking? You can make free unlimited changes to your destination, project and dates up until 60 days before you start.