Oeko-Institut e.V. is one of Europe's leading independent research and consultancy organisations working for a sustainable future. Since it was founded in 1977, the non-profit institute has been developing principles and strategies for implementing the vision of sustainable development at global, national and local level. Around 200 employees work at the three locations in Freiburg, Darmstadt and Berlin.
For the Institute's Sustainable Products & Material Flows Division, we are looking for
One Intern (m/f/d)
To start in our Freiburg office on March 1st, 2026 for a duration of three months
Your tasks
- Supporting scientific research in various projects, with a strong focus on circular economy. This will involve desk and literature research, case studies and expert interviews.
- Specifically, assisting in conducting technical studies on textile and plastics value chains, recyclability and EoL management.
- Support with the compilation of reports in ongoing projects.
Your profile
- Interest in the completion of a mandatory internship
- Interest in and experience with scientific research tasks. Experience with and interest in conducting AI-supported research will be helpful but not mandatory.
- Broad interest in the EU and national policies on circular economy, resources and recycling management of textiles and plastics
- Very good knowledge of MS Office
- Very good knowledge of written and spoken English.
- Technical background with a focus on natural sciences. Degree program, such as material sciences, is of advantage, but not mandatory.
Our offer
- Working in one of Europe's leading independent environmental and sustainability research institutes
- Working in an interdisciplinary and international team
- Full-time position (40-hour week) with an expense allowance of 500 EUR / month
- The possibility to follow up with a thesis, if interested.
Please send your application with an informal letter of motivation (max. 2 pages), curriculum vitae, current certificates, any thematically relevant student research projects to bewerbung-ps@oeko.de by 30th January, 2026. In your letter of motivation, please explain your understanding of a circular economy, describe the biggest levers for a circular textile and plastics economy and how the EU policies can be made more effective in their implementation. After completing the application process, your application documents will be deleted. Our privacy policy can be found here.
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“Family-aware company” award
Mobile working, flexible working-time models, financial support, additional children’s sick days, personnel and organisational development in digital transformation, preventive health care – these are some of the benefits the Oeko-Institut offers its employees to help them combine their jobs successfully with all phases of life. In recognition of this, in 2022 we received the “Family-aware company” award from familyNET with an added distinction for “digital excellence”. And we don’t just display the seal, we also live by it!
Data protection information
Application documents at the Öko-Institut e.V. are treated confidentially and in accordance with data protection regulations. We process your application data in order to be able to assess whether you have the suitability and professional performance for the position for which you are applying (Article 6 para. 1 letter b DS-GVO). The information you provide will remain with us and will not be passed on to third parties. Exceptions to this are the cases in which we work together with order processors (agencies) within the scope of application procedures. In these cases, we conclude a commissioned processing agreement with the agencies in accordance with Art. 28 DS-GVO.
Recipients of the personal data contained in the application documents are the respective responsible personnel managers, as well as the People & Development department. Your application documents will be deleted once the procedure has been completed. We will only use your contact data to contact you and inform you about the progress of the application process.
In the event of the conclusion of an employment relationship, a traineeship, an internship or any other contractual relationship, the data will initially continue to be stored and transferred to the personnel file. Otherwise, the application procedure ends for you with the receipt of a rejection. If we are interested in keeping your application for a possible future similar position, we will obtain consent from you (Art. 6 para. 1 a DS-GVO). In this case, we specify the period for which we want to keep your application (maximum 2 years). After that, the documents will be deleted.
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