Gen Z for the Trees (Z4T), Rainforest Partnership’s global movement to educate, inspire, and empower young climate and rainforest advocates, seeks volunteers for the 2022-2023 school year.
Z4T is a fully youth-led organization focused on stopping deforestation worldwide. We work to understand forest-risk commodities and call for change in land use, food systems, finance, and policy to achieve the bold vision of net zero deforestation by 2030. Our teams specialize in researching the major drivers of deforestation—beef/cattle, soya, and palm oil—while targeting downstream actors in commodity supply chains, urging them to respond to consumer demand for sustainability. We also produce educational content for our generation, helping to educate our peers about the importance of tropical rainforests, the impacts of deforestation, and the critical need for rainforest protection.
Gen Z for the Trees is collaborating with corporations, governments, multi-stakeholder coalitions, and universities to transform supply chains and policies that affect forests. Z4T empowers youth to lead the way, helping bridge gaps in knowledge and foster transparency.
Gen Z for the Trees empowers youth to transform our planet’s future—for ourselves and for subsequent generations.
If you are interested in research and working with other youth activists, apply to be a volunteer with Z4T today!
Available positions:
- Researcher: Researchers work with their team to help identify gaps in knowledge, gather information through online research and outreach, develop education or advocacy toolkits, and more. Applicants should be comfortable with synthesizing information from different sources, writing reports, and collaborating on projects. Openings: multiple.
- Beef/Cattle: research the cattle ranching industry, concentrated in Latin America, and pathways for its transformation.
- Soya: study indirect soy and reach out to companies; produce a literature review on connections between soil ecology, land degradation, and land use change in the Cerrado grasslands surrounding the Amazon rainforest.
- Palm Oil: monitor palm oil-producing areas, concentrated in Southeast Asia, and push for companies to be more ambitious and rigorous in sustainable sourcing.
- Call to Action: produce a comparative analytical report on the world’s 34 largest food and restaurant companies’ policies on sourcing forest-risk commodities.
- Law and Policy: compile and compare the impacts of past, current, and proposed government policies (local, national, and international) on forests.
- University Sustainability Advocate: Work with campus sustainability directors to assess dining hall procurement practices, advocate for transparent and responsible sourcing of forest-risk commodities, and provide expertise on how food factors into university climate plans and Scope 3 emissions. Openings: 2
- Timber Pulp and Paper (TPP) Team Lead: Research the timber industry globally, identify issues in transparency, and develop a targeted campaign to reduce deforestation from the industry. Successful applicants will have background knowledge of the TPP industry; and research/writing experience in forestry and environmental science. GIS skills are a plus. Openings: 1.
- Media & Outreach Volunteer: Work with the Media & Outreach team to share Z4T’s research as well as collaborate with other youth organizations. Successful applicants should be compelling writers, designers, video/multimedia editors, or public speakers. Applicants should also be comfortable engaging in dialogue with both their team and others such as sustainability directors, politicians, and corporations. Openings: multiple.
Join our team!
Volunteering with Gen Z for the Trees is a great opportunity for self-motivated individuals to make a difference. Team members are expected to contribute a minimum of 5 hours per week, attend at least one weekly online synchronous meeting, and communicate effectively with their team and external collaborators.
To apply, please visit https://forms.monday.com/forms/e52b41a2d6dcdf9954345daa51ee6b52?r=use1
Follow us and join the dialogue on Instagram at @genzforthetrees
