Hello everyone! My name is Emily Linn and I am a rising junior at Tulane University where I am pursuing a major in Psychology and a minor in Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship (SISE). Besides my interests in school I have always had a great desire to work with children and education. My two years at Tulane have also introduced me to a love of farmers markets and food education through my work with the Green Wave Community Market. This summer I have been fortunate enough to get an internship with a non-profit organization called GrowNYC. GrowNYC focuses on providing New Yorkers with the resources and education to maintain an environmentally sustainable and healthy lifestyle for today and the future. They have four main programs: Greenmarkets, recycling programs, community and school gardens, and educational programs. The organization is most famous for their Greenmarkets (especially the world famous Union Square Greenmarket) and proudly has at least one market in every borough of the city. This July they will be celebrating their 40th anniversary and strive to continue impacting farmers, shoppers, chefs, tourists, city dwellers, and more.
Within the organization I will be responsible for a few different roles. Firstly I will be working at the various Greenmarkets doing youth education programs, market tours, and general organizational work. I will also be participating in a program called “Seed to Plate” in which we enter schools and teach a 10-week lesson plan about nutrition and food. Once the school years ends at the end of June (New York schools end very late), I will continue doing market tours for camp groups and administrative work at their downtown office.
I am really excited to be working with GrowNYC this summer. I hope that this experience will help me to realize where I want my life to go in the future. I hope that this opportunity will help me to narrow down my interests and guide me toward a potential professional field. To aid me in making the most out of my summer and this internship, I have created five learning objectives:
1. I hope to learn about and experience the business side of a non-profit organization. I have had multiple opportunities to have hands-on experience through volunteer positions and clubs, but this internship will allow me to work on the administrative side of an organization through my work in their downtown office.
2. I hope to have the opportunity to provide New Yorkers with the knowledge and resources to change their shopping habits from super markets to local Greenmarkets.
3. I would love for this internship to give me some insight into my future as an educator through my in-class lesson plans through GrowNYC (Seed to Plate).
4. I hope to use my creativity and innovation to help to create youth centered education activities and programs.
5. I would be interested in improving my oral skills and confidence through my interactions with pedestrians at the Greenmarkets and children in the schools where “Seed to Plate” has been implemented.
The Newcomb Institute strives to educate and empower young women and GrowNYC does that and more. There are a disproportionate number of single mother households in low income neighborhoods. Many of the schools that the organization target are within food deserts and lack education about nutrition and health. These children from single mother households are empowered to take control of their nutrition and teach their families about the Greenmarkets. These Greenmarkets are affordable through the use of food stamps and are easily accessible within the five boroughs of New York. Single mothers now have the opportunity to broaden their idea of how to shop and provide for their children. Educating one child about these programs creates a chain through connections to empower an entire neighborhood to change their lifestyles.
I am so excited for this internship and cannot wait to keep y’all updated!