gREEN mONDAY Program implementation Internship
Learn about Green Monday!
BAckground information
HistoryGreen Monday is a Hong Kong-based social campaign established in 2012 by a man named David Yeung.
(David Yeung Background) Green Monday is a social campaign based in Hong Kong that works to fight climate change and food insecurity by promoting sustainable living practices as simple, viral, and actionable. Through their promotion of plant-based living and food rescue efforts, Green Monday serves as a resource for companies, organizations, and institutions to partner with, and as a community for people from all walks of life to join forces in the fight against climate change. Given that production of animal products is one of the largest contributors to climate change, one of the central goals of Green Monday is to encourage people to take part in plant-based lifestyle practices for at least one day per week. |
Mission"Green Monday is a social enterprise group that promotes and enables green, healthy and sustainable living. Through our vegetarian promotion and food rescue initiatives, we are a platform that enables corporations, restaurants, schools, and the general public to join efforts in reducing our carbon footprint and performing our social and environmental responsibilities." |
Project Overview
The purpose of this internship project was to kick-start the Green Monday initiative at Portland Community College (PCC).
My job was to serve as the Green Monday program coordinator at all four PCC campuses. Given that I am the first intern for which this position was assigned, this has been a bit of an unconventional experience. Since the concept of veganism is rather foreign to most people, it was important for me to frame plant-based living as part of living “green,” rather than use the label “vegan.” The Green Monday approach is characterized by compassion and empowerment, and as such they practice meeting everyone where they are at. Why Green Monday?I chose to implement the Green Monday initiative because I really admire the approach that the organization takes to reach people.
Many initiatives promoting the consumption of plant-based foods come at it from the perspective of animal rights. This is by no means inherently wrong. However, many groups such as PETA tend to use marketing messages riddled with anger and shame towards people who are not already vegan, which clouds the compassion that they supposedly stand for. When I learned of the inclusive, forward-thinking approach Green Monday practices, I was ecstatic. It is extremely important to me to represent an organization that actively uses kind and compassionate messages in their marketing efforts to reach their audience. PCC's Unmet needsWhile PCC has served plant-based options for years, the promotion of such options has lacked tremendously.
Since most people are unaware of the connection between dietary choices and climate change--specifically the discrepancy between the impact of a whole foods plant-based diet and the impact of an conventional omnivorous diet--PCC's first unmet need is an education about this connection. However, another challenge persists. Even if students are aware of the plant-based options being served at PCC, there are common misconceptions about such options (i.e., how will I get protein?, gross, flavorless, too expensive, etc.). It's much more difficult to reach students who hold these misconceptions to be true. This leads to the second, and arguably more important unmet need: the gap must be bridged between the PCC community and plant-based options. This is where Green Monday comes in... Specific Goals
Objectives
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This video provides more information about the link between the livestock industry and climate change.
Duties and ResponsibilitiesThe duties and responsibilities initially laid out in my job description are as follows:
During the course of my time working on Green Monday, my duties and responsibilities evolved to fit the circumstances. Some of the above responsibilities could not be carried out due to natural roadblocks, but many were significant in my average work week.
Specific Plans to achieve goals
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Personal Reflection
I learned that launching even a small initiative at a community college requires the expertise, passion, and resilience of many people who can commit to working collaboratively. One of the most important lessons I've learned as a result of this experience is how much work goes into launching even a small initiative.
This internship was somewhat unconventional in several ways. Upon accepting the position I was under the impression that I would be working closely with my mentor and with two other people I had met at the initial intake meeting. What I learned, however, was that this experience was to be almost entirely self-directed. I was given a job description, listing my duties and responsibilities and some overarching goals and objectives. During the intake meeting, the three other people involved gave me an overview of some key tasks I was to focus on, but noted that since it was my internship that they were going to be hands-off, save for checking in periodically. As unexpected as it was, it provided a unique opportunity to experiment with different ways of working independently. I explored various tech tools, organizational methods, time management strategies, and project planning/execution workflows. I also was exposed to many different types of people, all with their own ways of working and communicating. As a result of this exposure I learned how important being an adaptive communicator is to the progression of the initiative.
Another special takeaway from working on the Green Monday campaign was that it provided invaluable networking experience. I learned how to create outreach emails, organize and lead small meetings, write and give presentations to PCC student leaders, staff, and faculty, and conduct myself in a variety of professional settings.
All in all, I believe that my work on this campaign affected change indirectly by creating a foundation for any future interns and Green Monday ambassadors.
This internship was somewhat unconventional in several ways. Upon accepting the position I was under the impression that I would be working closely with my mentor and with two other people I had met at the initial intake meeting. What I learned, however, was that this experience was to be almost entirely self-directed. I was given a job description, listing my duties and responsibilities and some overarching goals and objectives. During the intake meeting, the three other people involved gave me an overview of some key tasks I was to focus on, but noted that since it was my internship that they were going to be hands-off, save for checking in periodically. As unexpected as it was, it provided a unique opportunity to experiment with different ways of working independently. I explored various tech tools, organizational methods, time management strategies, and project planning/execution workflows. I also was exposed to many different types of people, all with their own ways of working and communicating. As a result of this exposure I learned how important being an adaptive communicator is to the progression of the initiative.
Another special takeaway from working on the Green Monday campaign was that it provided invaluable networking experience. I learned how to create outreach emails, organize and lead small meetings, write and give presentations to PCC student leaders, staff, and faculty, and conduct myself in a variety of professional settings.
All in all, I believe that my work on this campaign affected change indirectly by creating a foundation for any future interns and Green Monday ambassadors.