New Delhi, March 25 The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has launched a short-term internship program for undergraduate and postgraduate students to provide hands-on, project-based learning through active engagement with NBA programs, officials said.
"The program is designed to build capacity, deepen environmental awareness, and significantly enhance employment opportunities for young people in the biodiversity conservation and natural resource management sectors, and also to develop them as biodiversity ambassadors," a senior official said.
The NBA also conducts a regular Biodiversity Protection Internship Program (BSIP) for a duration of one year, which has been extended to two more years.
In the current year, the sixth cycle of BSIP, 24 BSIP interns have been selected and placed in various State Biodiversity Boards (SBBs) and Union Territory Biodiversity Councils (UTBCs) to gain hands-on experience in biodiversity conservation and to support the functioning of SBBs/UTBCs.
"During the year-long program, the interns assigned to SBBs and UTBCs, participate in meetings, organize programs, conduct field studies, in addition to carrying out regular activities of SBBs and UTBCs. The NBA further provides opportunities to interested interns to continue their internship for two more years and deepen their knowledge and skills in biodiversity conservation," the official said.
The one-year BSIP regular program, initiated in partnership with the Ministry of Environment and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), aims to develop a cadre of trained young professionals through hands-on field engagement. Selected through a competitive all-India process, the interns are deployed across States and Union Territories to support biodiversity conservation initiatives and assist SBBs and UTBCs.