Description

INTERNSHIP TITLE:  Geospatial Analytics & Mapping Intern (US-Based Applicants ONLY)

INTERN WORKSITE LOCATION: Remote

DATES OF INTERNSHIP:  August 2025 - December 2025

HOURS PER WEEK:  20 hours

INTERNS SUPERVISOR & CONTACT INFORMATION:  Geospatial Technology Manager

FUNDING AVAILABLE FOR THE INTERNSHIP: $1603.50/month (part-time: 20 hours/week)

Mercy Corps responsibilities

For the duration of this internship assignment the intern will receive:

•  Training and supervisory support

•  Access to Mercy Corps online tools

•  All other tools, materials and communication requirements for this project

Intern responsibilities

Intern will remain responsible for all costs associated with:

•  Laptop for working remotely

•  Accommodation, travel and living expenses

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:

The field of GIS, Earth Observation and Artificial Intelligence is growing rapidly within the humanitarian community. In light of these developments, Mercy Corps is working to enhance its geospatial operations, support and products, ensuring that we have the correct tools, data and structures in place to harness these powerful technologies to meet the immediate needs of programs and teams in carrying out their humanitarian and development work.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  

•  The intern will learn about and contribute to applied GIS and Remote Sensing for humanitarian contexts including the specific needs of Mercy Corps teams and programs, the use cases for analysis and mapping and the core data and analytical needs for operational success.

•  The intern will have the opportunity to learn and employ skills productionizing workflows in a cloud environment, using cloud and desktop geospatial tools, and supporting internal capacity building at an international humanitarian organization

DELIVERABLES:

The Geospatial Intern will support the objectives of the T4D Data Science team in the following ways:

•  The intern will work with the T4D team to develop tutorials, templates and other resources supporting our recently published agency Cartographic Guidelines. This may involve compiling and reworking existing guidance, developing new guidance, and scripting automated analyses or products using the Cartographic Guidelines.  

•  Collaboratively develop a web map / application (likely employing ArcGIS Online) with one of Mercy Corps’ program teams

•  Support with ad-hoc analyses as needed by T4D, other HQ teams and country teams. This may be analysis using desktop software (e.g. QGIS) or programmatic workflows (Python, Google Earth Engine, etc). Some examples of possible projects could include:

•  Sourcing, cleaning and preparing data for analysis

•  Calculating, mapping, and interpreting remote sensing indices to support country team program design and adaptation

•  Supporting on the implementation of geospatial foundational models in a program use case

•  Developing/contributing to software packages to access commonly used APIs for geospatial analysis

•  Supporting teams with making maps for reports or monitoring

•  Researching and reporting or developing training tools on new geospatial tools, resources, and data sources

•  Contributing to an inventory of geospatial tools, data and analysis across the organization

•  Productionizing geospatial analyses using cloud platforms

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE HAS THESE QUALIFICATIONS:

•  University degree in progress or recently completed (within 1 year) in relevant discipline (GIS, Geography, Remote Sensing/Earth Observation, Geoinformatics, Data Science, Computer Science, Engineering, and related fields). APPLICANTS FOR THIS INTERNSHIP MUST BE BASED IN THE UNITED STATES.

•  If you have one, we would love to see a link to your online portfolio or GitHub on your resume. If you do not, please include a few examples of maps (static or dynamic) or other geospatial applications that you have created or contributed to with your application.

•  Educational experience with geospatial analysis using GIS software such as QGIS or ArcGIS (ArcGIS Online is a plus – Experience Builders, Story Maps, etc.)

•  Practice with geospatial programming in Python and/or Google Earth Engine

•  Familiarity and/or experience with geospatial data formats, projections, transformations, and structures

•  Ability to effectively communicate complex technical topics to a non-technical audience

•  The following experience/skills are not required but will be considered strong assets if a candidate possesses them:

•  Cloud development (AWS, Azure)

•  Full Stack Development

•  Education/curriculum development

•  Interest/experience in working in a multi-cultural and decentralized office environment

•  A strong desire to learn new skills and apply them

•  Comfort with ambiguity, and personally motivated

•  Creative thinking and solution-orientation

Mercy Corps interns represent the agency both during and outside of work hours and are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and Mercy Corps policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Team Engagement and Effectiveness

Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate. By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation. We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.

We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

Mercy Corps Headquarters: 45 SW Ankeny Street, Portland, Oregon 97204

Mercy Corps: https://www.mercycorps.org/

In your statement, you are encouraged to discuss any relevant experience, and demonstrate your interest. Your application will be reviewed by the Mercy Corps team and shortlisted candidates will be contacted directly for interviews.