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Back to the Bays Volunteer or Intern
Today

Volunteering + Internships

Throughout the year, we take on volunteers and interns who wish to contribute their time and hard-working hands on a more regular basis. Back to the Bays Interns and registered volunteers played a crucial role in our successful operation in 2023, and we intend to continue providing select opportunities for dedicated individuals to work alongside our scientists and educators behind-the-scenes. As with all of our public stewardship sessions, volunteers and interns can receive official community service hours for school, or even college credit as needed. If you are interested in committing to an internship or volunteering on a particular project, review our project areas and apply below.

* We have completed selection for our summer 2024 college and high school internships. Due to an abundance of interest this year, we are offering a Stewardship Certificate to those who are interested in volunteering on a regular basis at our Stewardship Sessions.

Back to the Bays Steward Program (NEW 2024!)

You’ll notice that our previous Membership program has been transitioned into a network of Stewards, for 2024. Our hope is that anyone interested in helping us to care for our local waters will sign on as a Steward. The $25 contribution enables us to continue engaging the public in our meaningful restoration work.

Learn more about our Back to the Bays Steward Program

What we do

  • Hands weaving live eelgrass plants into burlap tortilla for planting

    Marine Meadows Eelgrass Restoration

    Learn about the biology and importance of eelgrass while working to restore it. Volunteers are essential for cutting burlap “tortillas” and weaving live eelgrass shoots into them, to be used to create new marine meadows.

    LEARN MORE
  • Close up of pat-on-shell baby oyster being measured using calipers.

    Oyster Aquaculture

    CCE Marine Program spawns and raising millions of oysters each year in our hatchery. Volunteers are needed to help with cleaning, shell washing, counting and measuring oyster spat growth rates, and deploying spat-on-shell in order to rebuild oyster reef habitats.

    LEARN MORE
  • Volunteers using shovel to plant marsh grass along the shore

    Coastal Plant Restoration

    Help restore shoreline habitats, like salt marshes, dunes, and pollinator flowers. Volunteers help collect local seed, plant grasses and shrubs, and work in our greenhouse and nursery.

    LEARN MORE
  • Live seahorse held in a volunteer's hands, with a ruler for measuring (4.5 inches long)

    Seahorse Population Monitoring

    Wade into the eelgrass with us to seine for seahorses. Volunteers help count and record the populations of these threatened animals, and many other species that rely on eelgrass meadow habitats.

    LEARN MORE

  • Outreach and Fundraising

    CCE Marine Program educates the public and youth about all of our initiatives, in hopes of creating a new generation of marine stewards. Volunteers are essential assistants at outreach events and fundraisers, like our annual Greenport Shellabration.

    LEARN MORE
  • Mating pair of horseshoe crabs in the sand at night, with tags for tracking population.

    Horseshoe Crab Monitoring Network

    In May and June, join us under the full or new moon at high tide. Volunteers count and tag horseshoe crabs, providing scientific data that will inform conservation of this important species throughout the region.

    Learn More
  • Baby scallops in hands.

    Bay Scallop Restoration

    CCE Marine Program monitors local bay scallop populations and raises scallops using aquaculture. Volunteers help construct equipment to collect wild scallop juveniles, and count and measure scallop growth rates, all of which contributes to important scientific data.

    LEARN MORE
  • 2 girls with buckets in a salt marsh

    Beach Cleanups

    Help protect marine animals from entanglement in old fishing gear and trash, by joining us for a beach cleanup at one of our many facilities and landscapes across the east end.

    LEARN MORE

Maximize Your Impact by Becoming a Back to the Bays Intern

Looking for an opportunity to help Back to the Bays while advancing your career goals? We have internship opportunities year-round.

Back to the Bays Interns gain hands-on experience participating in various CCE Marine Program projects, from aquaculture to habitat restoration to youth education. Interns assist CCE staff in promoting awareness of our restoration work both in person and on social media, and help engage the public at our outreach events, all while developing knowledge and skills in marine science and environmental communication.

Minimum 10 hours/week. Some evening and weekend events will be expected.

Interns must be over 18, except for our Junior Internship Program (see below).

All internships are unpaid at this time, but college credit is available upon request.

If you have questions, contact Volunteer Coordinator, Hazel Wodehouse, at hew57@cornell.edu.

* We have completed our selection for our summer 2024 college and high school interns. If you are interested in Fall internships please email Volunteer Coordinator, Hazel Wodehouse at hew57@cornell.edu.

Intern, Jackie Glaser, holding her first seahorse find during a seahorse population monitoring event.

Read about what our 2023 Interns did last summer, including testimonials, in our blog post.

Junior Internships

We offer an introductory level experience for rising High School juniors and seniors (ages 16-17). Junior Interns will meet once per week at our Tiana Bayside Facility in Hampton Bays. This program will run for about 8 weeks over the summer and is designed to create a learning environment for young aspiring marine stewards. Activities may include assisting with our marine science summer camps, tending to our coastal plant garden, helping with oyster restoration, and studying the coastal habitats of Long Island. Junior Interns are encouraged to attend our public Stewardship Sessions and will be able to assist our staff with setup, cleanup, and helping engage the public in the work they have been learning about.

Questions can be directed to our Volunteer Coordinator.

* We have completed selection for our Summer 2024 Junior Internships. Due to an abundance of interest this year, we are offering a Stewardship Certificate to those who are interested in volunteering on a regular basis at our Stewardship Sessions. View the flyer for more information (links are clickable).

Post-Grad Specialization

We occasionally pair select individuals directly with a CCE staff member working on a focused project in our Habitat or Aquaculture Programs. These opportunities are offered on a case-by-case basis, to highly motivated, independent, and experienced individuals who are seeking a more rigorous internship experience, or are interested in pursuing a particular scientific research question. Preference is given to those who have completed a Bachelor’s degree in marine or environmental science, or a related field. If you think this opportunity suits you, complete an application and email Volunteer Coordinator.

Habitat

Interns specializing in our Habitat Program may focus on:

Eelgrass + Coastal Plant Restoration

Sediment Analysis

Seahorse Monitoring

Required locations: Hampton Bays, Southold, occasionally off-site

Aquaculture

Interns specializing in our Aquaculture Program may focus on:

Oyster Aquaculture

Bay Scallop + Clam Seeding

Site Maintenance + Monitoring

Required locations: Shelter Island, occasionally Southold Hatchery

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