The Action Lab is seeking law students for summer 2027 internships. A summer legal
internship at The Action Lab offers law students the opportunity to work with The Action
Lab’s team on cutting edge policy and power-building campaigns in a range of emerging
issue areas. Summer interns would gain experience developing innovative public policy
solutions, drafting and campaigning for legislation, serving as a legal and policy
advocate, working with leading organizers on power-building campaigns, and helping
implement policy wins. The internship will run from June to August 2027.
Examples of key initiatives at The Action Lab on which the fellow might work include:
● AI and Technology in the Workplace -- The Action Lab’s is launching an AI and
Bossware Campaign and Policy Hub to give the movement for worker-centered
AI the expanded expertise and campaign capacity it needs to develop, support,
and win guardrails around AI and tech in the workplace. Chiefly focused at the
state and local levels -- the place where new models for regulation and
protections will first be developed, won, and tested, before they are scaled to the
federal level -- this new project will allow the fellow to engage on some of the
most timely labor fights of our day.
● Ensuring that Universal Child Care Expansion Delivers Good Jobs for
Careworkers -- There is new momentum at the state and city levels to create
universal public child care programs -- a promising trend for addressing the
family affordability crisis. But often overlooked is the need to ensure that these
new caregiving jobs are good jobs with higher pay that recognizes the important
work of early childhood educators. The Action Lab is convening a table of unions,
child care workers and providers, and other stakeholders to launch a campaign
for labor standards for this crucial workforce and the funding to make them
possible.
● Innovative Housing Justice Campaigns -- Tenants unions that empower tenants
to organize and protect them against retaliation when they do are a promising
strategy in housing justice that is seeing a resurgence. Building on model
authorizing legislation that cities like San Francisco have passed, The Action Lab
is developing campaigns for similar legislation in other states and cities.
About The Action Lab. The Action Lab brings together organizations and leaders
across disciplines to build stronger, more creative and impactful social justice
movements. Founded by leading lawyers and organizers who previously founded and
led Make the Road New York and the Center for Popular Democracy, The Action Lab is
incubating and anchoring a range of innovative social change campaigns. With a staff
that includes some of the social justice movement’s most experienced and respected
organizers, legal advocates, and researchers, The Action Lab is helping the movement
meet the moment with campaigns that respond to some of the key social justice
challenges of our time.
The Action Lab unfortunately does not have independent funding for fellowship positions so is only able to sponsor law students for fellowships that are available and financed by their law school, or external fellowship programs.
Interested law students should send a resume and short cover letter to Paul Sonn at
paul@actionlabny.org with the words “SUMMER LEGAL INTERNSHIP APPLICATION”
in the subject line.
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