B

Sustainability Intern

Blue Phoenix • Netherlands • Added on Jul 24, 2026
Apply →

This role places you at the analytical heart of Blue Phoenix, where you will manage environmental impact assessments with a primary focus on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). You will be responsible for collecting and validating complex data sets from global operations to build robust models that quantify the footprint of waste recovery processes. Rather than just tracking numbers, you will turn data into actionable insights for the sustainability and operational teams.

The mission is critical because Blue Phoenix operates in the high-stakes circular economy sector, transforming industrial waste into construction resources. By conducting precise LCA studies, you help prove the carbon-saving benefits of recycled materials over virgin alternatives, directly supporting global decarbonization and resource rebirth. Your work provides the transparency needed to validate circular economy claims and drive industrial process improvements.

This suits someone who is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in a technical field like Industrial Ecology or Environmental Engineering and possesses a natural affinity for quantitative problem-solving. You should be comfortable navigating specialized software and large datasets within an international industrial context.

Job FAQs

What are the main missions and responsibilities of this role?

The intern will primarily focus on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for various products and industrial processes. This involves supporting the development and maintenance of models that follow ISO 14000 standards, ensuring that every stage of the material recovery journey is accurately accounted for. Beyond model maintenance, you will perform scenario analyses to explore how different technologies or sourcing strategies affect the company's carbon footprint. You will also be tasked with cleaning and validating operational data from diverse global regions, ensuring the integrity of sustainability reporting. Finally, the role includes translating complex technical findings into analytical reports and presentations. These documents are essential for identifying 'hotspots'—areas with high environmental impacts—and proposing specific improvements to enhance resource efficiency and circularity.

Key learning opportunities for this job

Candidates can expect deep immersion in LCA methodologies applied to the waste management and construction sectors. Working with real-world, messy industrial data provides a level of experience that academic projects rarely match, particularly in understanding LCI (Life Cycle Inventory) development. You will gain proficiency in specialized tools such as openLCA and ecoinvent, which are industry standards for environmental footprinting. Mentorship from senior sustainability professionals will also provide a window into how global ESG strategies are implemented across multiple continents. Exposure to carbon footprinting and GHG Protocol frameworks will be a significant asset. You will learn how to align site-level operational data with high-level corporate sustainability goals, a skill highly sought after in the current ESG job market.

How does the ideal candidate look like (experience, skills)?

The ideal candidate is an MSc student in a discipline like Environmental Engineering, Industrial Ecology, or Chemical Engineering. A strong technical foundation is required to understand the chemical and physical processes involved in waste treatment and resource recovery. Technically, you should have prior experience with LCA software and be highly proficient in Microsoft Excel for data manipulation. Knowledge of Power BI is a distinct advantage, as the role involves visualizing complex environmental performance metrics for various stakeholders. Soft skills are equally important; you need to be an independent problem-solver who can manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment. Since you will handle data from different global sites, cultural adaptability and strong English communication skills are essential.

Advice to stand out and make a successful application

To stand out, move beyond mentioning a general interest in sustainability and demonstrate a specific mastery of LCA software. Mentioning a specific project where you built a model or utilized the ecoinvent database will immediately signal your technical readiness to the hiring team. Research Blue Phoenix's specific waste-to-resource processes, such as incinerator bottom ash (IBA) recycling. Showing you understand the difference between simple waste management and the specialized circular economy solutions they provide will demonstrate a higher level of motivation and alignment with their 'nothing wasted' mission. Highlight your ability to translate data into insights. If you have experience using data visualization tools like Power BI to make technical information accessible to non-experts, make sure that is prominent in your CV as it aligns with the role’s reporting requirements.

What aspects of the company's sustainability is this role likely to focus on?

The role is heavily focused on the environmental pillar of ESG, specifically resource circularity and carbon intensity. You will likely spend a lot of time analyzing the avoided emissions gained by substituting virgin aggregates with recovered materials. Another key focus is process optimization. By identifying environmental hotspots in the company’s treatment plants, your work informs engineering decisions on how to lower water or energy consumption during the recycling process. You will also contribute to the transparency of sustainability reporting. As global regulations tighten around green claims, your rigorous LCA data ensures that the company’s circular economy impact is backed by science-based evidence and recognized international standards.

What are the main challenges someone in this role might face?

One major challenge is data fragmentation. Collecting consistent and accurate information from different operational sites across four continents can be difficult due to varying measurement standards and local reporting nuances. You might also face the complexity of modeling non-standard waste streams. Unlike standard manufacturing, the input materials in waste recovery are often heterogeneous, making it difficult to establish fixed baselines for Life Cycle Inventories. Lastly, balancing technical rigor with business speed can be tricky. While LCA work requires meticulous attention to detail, the industrial environment often demands quick insights for strategic decision-making, requiring you to prioritize tasks effectively without sacrificing accuracy.

How could a typical day look like for someone in this position?

A typical day might start with a data validation session, where you review energy and material flow inputs sent from a facility in a different region to ensure they meet LCI quality standards. Midday might be spent inside an LCA software environment, adjusting parameters in a model to see how a new technology upgrade significantly changes the environmental profile of a specific recycled product. In the afternoon, you could participate in a cross-functional meeting with the operations team to present your latest findings. You will explain where the biggest environmental opportunities lie, followed by some time spent updating technical documentation for the annual sustainability report.

What are the opportunities for professional growth and development in this role?

This internship serves as a premier gateway into the specialized field of sustainability analytics. Successfully completing this role could lead to future positions as a Sustainability Analyst or LCA Specialist within the circular economy or industrial sectors. You will build a global professional network by interacting with stakeholders across four continents. This international exposure is invaluable for anyone looking to build a career in global corporate sustainability or ESG consulting. The high-visibility nature of LCA projects means your work will be seen by strategic decision-makers. Proving your value here can lead to more complex projects involving decarbonization pathways and long-term sustainability strategy development.

The main stakeholders you might be interacting with

You will report directly to the Sustainability Team, receiving mentorship and technical direction from experienced LCA professionals who will oversee your modeling work. Frequent interaction with Plant Operators and Regional Managers is expected. You will rely on them for the 'ground-truth' operational data required to feed your models, and they will rely on you for insights into their facility's performance. You may also interface with Reporting and Compliance officers. Your data provides the evidence needed for regulatory filings and voluntary ESG disclosures, making you a critical partner in the company's external transparency efforts.

CSR Jobs newsletter

Never miss the next opportunity

Get a curated selection of new CSR, ESG, and sustainability roles in your inbox. No daily noise, just useful opportunities.

Free to join. Unsubscribe anytime.