End Unpaid Internships

Surely sustainable development is about long term positive changes - about supporting future generations. And surely it is important for young professionals to be engaged in sustainable development. And if we are concerned with sustainable futures for all people, then young people from disadvantaged backgrounds - or just your ordinary middle class young person - should be able to train with and learn from experienced sustainable development practitioners - whether that be NGOS, businesses, governments, But the system doesn't support this - not in the least.

A friend of mine has recently started sending letters to organizations that say, in brief, 'hello, you look like you have a fabulous position, which I am highly qualified for, and I would love to work with you. I would bring tremendous experience to this position. But I will not be applying to it because it is an unpaid position, and I can not afford to live in England without being paid.'

I applaud her efforts (and am considering sending some of those myself.) So many of my friends and colleagues are searching for jobs, and are finding great positions that are unpaid. My friends are not fresh out of University - they often have several years of working experience behind them (though perhaps in a different field) and a MA. Even so, they are not considered experienced enough for many paid positions. And its not just my friends who work in international development - the NGO and even some of the business community is filled with this tendency. The result - the young people who can fill those positions have some kind of financial support (usually parents) who can support them. Which excludes almost all of the bright young people I know from Africa, Asia and South America - not to mention myself, from the USA (and it effects UK citizens as well, though not quite as much, as they often have higher social capital).It also perpetuates a system where hard work and experience is not valued.

Working in England for a few years would be immensely helpful not only for their CV and their future work in the field, but for the organizations that they would work for, who are in desperate need of the ideas and experiences that people who don't look or think like they do would bring.

So the system perpetuates itself. England attracts thousands of overseas students - who pay high fees - and who often have valuable experience to enhance sustainable development of all types, but it does not benefit from that experience in the workforce. While I understand that many NGOs can not afford to hire more staff (especially now), there needs to be some way to address this challenge, else we shall continue to live in a state of hypocrisy.