Volunteer/Internship program

Volunteer/Internship program

Buckingham Fountain, 1927, Edward H. Bennett, 301 S. Columbus Dr. Photo Credit: Eric Allix Rogers
Buckingham Fountain, 1927, Edward H. Bennett, 301 S. Columbus Dr. Photo Credit: Eric Allix Rogers

Thank you for your interest in Preservation Chicago and Chicago’s incredible built environment!  We love to partner with volunteers who are as passionate and dedicated to Chicago as we are to help advance the mission.

Regardless of formal training, Preservation Chicago welcomes enthusiastic individuals to participate in volunteer projects in partnership with Preservation Chicago staff that help in some way to advance the preservation movement in Chicago and to advance the mission of Preservation Chicago grassroots historic preservation advocacy.

We’re too small an organization to have a formal volunteer/internship program, so we’ve found that the most successful and sustainable way for individuals to contribute to the mission is for them to focus on those areas or issues that they are most interested. 

Our work ranges from advocacy to historic research, policy papers to community organizing, communications to photography, news reporting to social media, graphic design to website management, and from events to fundraising.  We have worked with volunteer photographers who love shooting historic buildings, with volunteers who are regarding architectural research, and with volunteers interested in mapping projects  and with website design.

Preservation Chicago’s volunteer/internship program is project-oriented and largely self-directed.  In general we’ve found that the best candidates are self-motivated, enthusiastic for their project, and willing to take initiative. Volunteers are strongly encouraged to focus on their own preservation interests and design their own deliverables.

While volunteer/internship program is unpaid, we do have the ability to share and promote written articles or photographs, policy papers, and other deliverables through our website, newsletters and social media channel. 

If you’re interested in an volunteer/internship project with Preservation Chicago, please send an detailed email to info@preservationchicago.org.