Working in partnership with Bright Green Business and Zero Waste Scotland, earlier this year, we opened a number of intern roles at our workshop in Edinburgh. As their time with us draws to a close, our interns join us to reflect on their experience and share what they’ve learned during their time with us.
Hosting the interns at our charity has been an enjoyable and rewarding experience. The impact made by each in their respective departments has been felt by the team and is certainly measurable.
From Volunteer to Educational Reuse Intern
Gareth first joined our team as a volunteer. After completing his degree in Human Biology, he was eager to gain practical experience in the STEM sector – and that’s when he came across our internship programme.
Having previously worked with us as a volunteer, Gareth was familiar with our work and the impact he could make, and with the added opportunity to develop new skills while earning a wage, it was a no-brainer.
Through our internship programme, Gareth has been involved in a variety of tasks, from wiping data to repairing devices. These hands-on experiences have allowed him to develop new technical skills while supporting our work. James Turing, our Founder and CEO, adds: “The Educational Reuse intern has enabled us to reduce waste through efficient and thorough repair and redeployment projects, which have seen many devices repaired and put to reuse in our charitable projects.”
Working at the Trust has helped me to learn a wide array of skills and has been an immense boost to my self-confidence. I’d recommend it to anyone wanting to work within the charitable or technology sectors!
It’s been fantastic to witness Gareth’s growth over the last few months. We are so grateful to have had him on our team and look forward to seeing his continued success.
Realising Potential
Louis joined our team as a Data Optimisation Intern, working to enhance the refurbishment of IT assets through advanced data analysis and automation, helping to increase the potential reuse of devices and reduce waste.
My work involved coding to automate the uploading of data to a database (MongoDB), followed by data analysis and evaluation to identify opportunities to improve efficiencies. In carrying out the above project I have been able to develop transferable skills and experience in the application of data science tools and approaches.
James adds: “The Data Optimisation intern has been instrumental in our goal to improve data quality and improve our processes, leading to reduced waste and better use of time.”
It’s been a real pleasure working with Louis. His work has played a key role in helping to optimise our recycling process, providing actionable insights to support future projects.
Creating Lasting Impact
Šárka, our Commercial Reuse Intern, has been supporting our warehouse team, helping to refurbish donated devices ready for reuse.
During her time with us, she processed hundreds of devices, allowing her to develop new skills and create lasting impact through her work. From learning how to wipe and troubleshoot devices to assisting with logging and organising computers, Šárka got stuck in with a range of tasks and has been a real asset to our team.
My contribution helped scale up refurbishment efforts, potentially enabling over 350 devices to be resold, helping to generate an estimated £17,500 in funding to support IT education in Malawi. This internship reinforced my passion for technology-driven sustainability solutions, preparing me for future roles in environmental data analysis and circular economy initiatives.
James adds: “The Commercial Reuse intern has made a drastic improvement to our throughput for reusing devices commercially. This has been measured as the intern being directly responsible for 65% of the commercially reused devices in January.”
Once again, we’d like to thank all of our interns for their hard work, they’ve been fantastic to work with and have made a real impact within our team and beyond.
