By Julia Stanitski, VRG Intern
My internship at The Vegetarian Resource Group was incredible. I originally reached out to VRG because I have been so interested in veganism and health promotion. I had heard of VRG before, but never really knew much about the organization. After talking with Charles Stahler, who I was in contact with about the experience, I knew I would love the activities it would entail. I began the internship in early September, and continued until December, learning a lot along the way.
I began the internship by assisting with the restaurant guide on the VRG website. Debra sent me general information on how to complete summaries/write-ups for new vegan restaurants that popped up across the USA and Canada. This was so fun for me, as I got to view and learn about new places opening up. It was great to see what types of vegan food and cuisine are available nowadays! I also got to review a Delaware vegan restaurant for the VRG E-mail Newsletter. This was awesome! My friends and I went to Daily Veg, a 100% vegan restaurant in Newark, Delaware, to try a variety of their offerings. I had never written a food review before, but it was fun getting to taste the foods, take photographs, and write about it afterwards.
Next, I created a blog post about vegan snacks for dancers. This was very personal to me as I have danced for my entire life. Since I have only been vegan for around three years, my eating habits have definitely changed throughout my life. I really got to think about the best snacks for athletes and dancers, in particular, which I really enjoyed. The second blog post I wrote was about vegan food available at my college. I loved doing this, because there are tons of vegan options at the University of Delaware! I really got to explain how I was able to find vegan food and I did not go hungry during the day because of my dietary restrictions.
The third blog post I wrote was about favorite vegan foods of various college interns. I was able to connect with the other interns at VRG and ask them what vegan foods they enjoy at their own schools. If the interns were in high school, I asked them what foods they would like to see at the future college they attend. I loved this because I got to email with people all around the country that are similar in age to me, and learn about where they went to school and what they like. After this, I finally wrote a post regarding Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) regarding parents, teens, and veganism. This was my favorite blog post I got to write. It hit home to me because I started going vegan when I was 17/18-years-old. As my parents are not vegan or vegetarian, it was difficult changing my way of life and how I ate when I was at home with them. I had to explain a lot about veganism to them, and have a ton of confidence in myself regarding my decisions. I think this FAQ will be very helpful for teens that either are vegan, or are thinking about going vegan in the near future.
Next, I got to help another VRG intern that goes to Loyola University with one of her projects. I really liked this because I got to see what the types of projects were that she was working on. I assisted her on a specific project by sharing my opinions on commercials & advertisements of vegan products. She then put my opinion and the opinions of other interns into a big blog post for the website. It was great!
One of the most valuable things I got to do in this internship was make a list of companies and positions that interested me for future jobs. For each, I put their requirements, links to their applications, and the general gist of the employment opportunity. This really got me thinking about types of jobs I could see myself working in in the future. Especially since I am unsure of the specific job I want, it was great to see the options out there and what I would actually like doing after reading their descriptions. I am now able to keep this and look back on it throughout my senior year of college while I begin to search for jobs.
Lastly, I was able to review two vegan food products. These were GoodPops (organic freezer pops made from juice) and soy filets. These were fun because I got to taste two different products I had never purchased before on my own. I enjoyed writing a little blurb about the positives of each and where to find them at stores.
Overall, this internship experience was great for me. I really learned a lot about veganism in the real world, how companies have been promoting the lifestyle, and how much vegan-related media and products have grown in the past few years! I loved working with VRG and want to continue to stay connected with vegan health promotion and media. I would definitely recommend this internship to any high school or college student interested in vegetarianism, veganism, or just a healthier lifestyle.
For information about VRG internships, see https://www.vrg.org/student/index.php