Name: Miya Matsumune
Class Year: 2026
Major: Geology, History
Minor: Environmental Studies
 
Internship Organization:  Bosque Santiago
Internship Title:   Intern
Location:  Santiago, Chile
 
What’s happening at your internship? We would love to hear what kind of work you are doing!  

Bosque Santiago is a center for environmental education within Santiago’s Parque Metropolitano. As an intern, I planned a geology workshop for kids as my personal project, and helped out with other workshops, tours, and events.

Why did you apply for this internship?  

Environmental education is my dream field of work. I love to teach others, invent games and activities, and I am passionate about sustainability and community outreach.
 
What has been your favorite part of this internship?    

Bosque Santiago is operated entirely in Spanish, and I am not a native Spanish speaker. It was difficult to adjust at first, because I wanted to speak professionally with my supervisor and I was worried about coming across as not intelligent or capable because of my limited Spanish abilities. However, as I became more comfortable with everyone, I began to relax and formed strong relationships with my supervisor and co-workers.

Was this internship what you expected it to be?   

I did not expect there to be so much freedom in this internship, however I ended up enjoying how much autonomy I had in the position. I was able to choose my own personal project and work on it at my own pace. Because of this, I was able to improve my proactivity and advocate for myself.