Sascha Garzke

From January to June 2007, I undertook an internship at the Global Energy Network Institute in San Diego, California and was working on two projects during that time.

I prepared a report based on an internet research study on five countries that are generating the majority of their electricity from renewable sources. The mission was to draw conclusions for the industrial countries to improve their share of renewable energy in order to improve the climate situation around the globe.

For the second project, I collaborated with other volunteers to optimize the analysis of the structure of the GC100 index. Furthermore, we started to create a marketing concept for the index to improve its exposure on the stock markets.

What can I say about the six months in San Diego? First and most important point from my perspective, I met friendly, helpful and generous people at GENI. The staff was always there for me and made my time in the US more than a work stay, but rather a stay within a band of friends. The work gave me insights into energy issues and a very good foundation for my studies afterwards. Additionally, I was able to gain a priceless understanding of the American business world and culture. Besides, the Californian lifestyle is very relaxed, the weather was usually great (I started sunbathing in March) and the people are very leisure as well. As a baseball fanatic, I enjoyed the performance of the San Diego Padres throughout the season, although they did not make it to the play-offs (I still cannot believe it:).

Summing up, I can say that an internship with GENI was one of the best experiences in my life, and I absolutely encourage anyone to support the GENI Initiative.

Best wishes from Germany Sascha Garzke

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