Hear from Astrid, our ESG partnership intern, about the first two months of her experience with Habitat Ireland!
Since arriving in July, I have been supporting Habitat for Humanity Ireland's strategy to develop ESG Partnerships in the Lisburn office. As an American university student, deciding to work my first co-op across the ocean in Belfast was intimidating, but I am grateful every day that I made the choice to come work for Habitat Ireland.
My role in the office is to help develop ESG partnerships and other tasks that ensure sustainability. ESG stands for environmental social governance, which can help evaluate how sustainable and ethical an organization is. Within this role I work to consolidate partner company information such as location, mission, sustainability efforts, and more. In addition to research, I also come up with different ways we can engage with partners.
Recently, I’ve begun working to calculate the carbon footprint of all ReStores across Ireland. By gathering data from different bills and statements for each store and using the Gov.ie Climate Toolkit, I am working to better understand the footprint of each store. As part of this, I am creating an in-depth how-to guide and creating a list of recommendations for how the carbon footprint can be reduced going forward.
Besides working in the office, I have volunteered on the House to Home programme with Ellie, a fellow university student working in communications, and Rab, the Habitat supervisor. House to Home supports vulnerable local people to make their house a home. Ellie and I focused on painting and assisted with the installation of a washer/dryer. I truly valued this experience and was able to see the direct impact of our work. See exactly what we did in our 'Day in the Life' TikTok!
I was also able to take part in a took a Kitchen Rescue, a programme that takes out good quality kitchens and diverts them from landfill, by selling them in Habitat ReStore at a low cost. You might even spot us on TV this Autumn...
I have also participated in the ‘Community Connections’ programme where I was able to start my volunteering journey by learning how Habitat for Humanity Ireland contributes to progressing the Sustainable Development Goals. I was able to meet other young people and participate in activities that enhanced my understanding of the work Habitat does.
Since participating in Community Connections, I’ve started volunteering in ReStore Lisburn and Belfast on Mondays. I love interacting with the customers and other volunteers, hearing their stories, and seeing first-hand the impact the Habitat ReStores can have on communities, families, and the planet.
Overall, I have greatly enjoyed my time so far at Habitat for Humanity Ireland and cannot wait to continue my volunteer journey in ReStore, meaningfully contribute to the office, and learn as much as I can!
