Would you like to gain experience in scientific research focused on port cities? This interdisciplinairy research find common ground with urban planning, maritime hertitage, sustainability, and port-city dynamics. You can broaden your skills while finding networking opportunities and contributing to existing projects, or starting your own.
To apply for an internship, contact Carola Hein at c.m.hein@tudelft.nl with your motivation and your CV.
Alina Zafar (GLOCAL)
I am delighted to share my experience as an intern with PortCityFutures. From the first day, the crew greeted me with genuine warmth and curiosity, asking what I hoped to learn and then shaping my tasks around those goals. Their cheerfulness made it feel more like a collaborative studio than a workplace, and I felt part of the community rather than a temporary guest.
As interns, we primarily belonged to two overlapping circles: the student assistants and the blog teams. However, PortCityFutures provided a variety of directions we could also join. The dual role meant I was flexible in moving between research tasks and public outreach in the same week. For interns, I guess, our primary anchor was a weekly catch-up with Yi Kwan. Those short, relaxed meetings clarified priorities, opened new doors, and reminded me that my learning curve counted as much as any deadline. Also, Carola Hein, our internship supervisor, was an inspiring ideational driver whose genuine fascination with every project showed me that multitasking, when driven by passion, can be creative, focused, and deeply motivating.
Being a part of the blog team offered a view of their 360-degree publishing cycle. I studied the house style guide, read past articles to catch the voice, and joined live edit sessions, raising questions and suggesting tweaks. Midway through the internship, I co-authored a post with another intern, Beatriz. We learned how two writers can merge into one steady narrative. Our topic matched the priorities outlined in the student-assistant meetings, which made the work feel rooted and useful. Finally, I was encouraged to pick any port-city topic I loved and run with it. Writing that piece, free of strict limits, and seeing it published was a highlight I will never forget.
Working across these tasks rewired my view of port-city territories. Now, I see ports and cities as dynamic ecosystems that constantly negotiate space in multiple ways. That insight alone feels worth a semester of lectures. PortCityFutures gave me sharper data skills, stronger writing instincts, and a newfound confidence in interdisciplinary teamwork. I leave grateful, inspired, and eager to stay connected with a network that turns generous support into real opportunities for young professionals.
Beatriz Cardoso Braz (Global History and International Relations)
During my internship at PortCityFutures, I had the opportunity to be closely involved in one of the most important platforms: the blog. As part of the blog, together with Alina and Yi Kwan, I gained first-hand experience in blog writing, preparing research based on content for publication. This experience helped me to sharpen my editorial and communication skills and deepened my understanding of interdisciplinary research on port cities.
Working behind the scenes of the PCF blog, I also contributed to the revision process from an academic piece on the development of Genoa’s waterfront. Through this, I learned how to balance academic rigor with public readability- an essential skill for everyone engaged in knowledge dissemination.
One of the most rewarding aspects of this internship as being part of a young and innovative project, that aims to bring visibility to the different variations of Port Cities in the most diverse areas. Through meetings with the different teams and feedbacks sessions I gained insight into about blog’s strategy and how it fits in PCF’s mission of fostering interdisciplinary dialogue. The team was always supportive and open to new ideas, which made it easy to contribute creatively while learning from others.
This internship has been a real steppingstone in my professional development. It allowed me to combine my academic background with my interest in writing and editing. I leave this experience with a stronger editorial eye, a better understanding of the publication process, and a deeper appreciation for the role that communication plays in connecting research with society.
PortCityFutures is an excellent opportunity to work and learn with an intersectionary team about urban, maritime, and cultural sides of portcities. I truly enjoyed being part of this network, where independent work and innovation are encouraged. I highly recommend joining PortCityFutures!
