Explore Arshi’s career journey with Youth Friendly Employer, the Environment Agency!
Hello! I’m Arshi Shah and I am currently working at the Environment Agency on an Industrial Placement. I was born and bred in Nairobi, Kenya, and only moved to London 4 years ago for university. I completed my bachelor’s degree in Environmental Geoscience at UCL. Following this I joined the Summer Diversity Internship Programme (SDIP) at the Environment Agency during the summer of 2022, which successfully led me to the industrial placement I am currently on.
For the SDIP, I was based in the People team in the Environment and Business directorate for 12 weeks. My primary focus was on a faith and youth career entry project, targeted at individuals from ethnic minority backgrounds. Having support from an officer in my team allowed me to gain a valuable insight on the research carried out, but I was also able to implement my ideas and frame them to achieve short term wins.
I was also fortunate to shadow various team meetings and site visits with the Thames2100 team (which works to manage tidal flood risk in the Thames Estuary until the year 2100) and get involved with their team discussions on sustainability and the circular economy. This widened my networking and communication skills as I interacted with colleagues of diverse backgrounds at different levels in the directorate. Additionally, the support and guidance received by my mentor throughout the 12 weeks was invaluable as it allowed me to go on external site meetings to widen my knowledge base.
I am close to finishing my industrial placement now, in which I have been able to expand my skillset while focussing on setting up a new buddying programme for colleagues from ethnic minority backgrounds. Having the hands-on experience of project management and seeing the result of my project follow through was fulfilling.
My other areas of work include organising and administering career entry schemes and providing support for more inclusive targeted recruitment outreach/attraction. One of the best things about my industrial placement is the people I work with. All my
colleagues are friendly, welcoming and I’m always wanting to learn more from them. My line manager has allowed me to explore key areas of work that interests me through various training options. I think another important thing I enjoy is that every day is different – be it on a site visit, volunteering at outreach events with students (for example, Skills London) or doing admin for the Buddying Scheme project, it all keeps me motivated to keep making a difference for people and the environment.
In April, I will be joining the Sustainable Business Team as a Project Officer. Knowing that I have developed both personally and professionally, the transferrable skills I have gained while being on the People team will be beneficial towards my new role and I am excited to make a great impact in the world of sustainability and net zero!
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