Provide information on your organization and the context of the project.

Focus the project scope to be concise and achievable within the 80 hours, over a 2-6 week timeframe.

You should accept at least 3 learners per project, and up to 4. Working with 4 learners means a project can require 320 hours of work in total.

Include any specific tools or programs learners will work with.

Include the type of support will you provide for learners (eg. weekly check-ins, team meetings, a staff member who will be their point of contact).

Learners will apply individually and directly to your project.

You are responsible for reviewing applications within 5 business days and are only to accept the applications of the learners you want to work with.

We encourage you to review learner applications to ensure your project is a match to their skills and you’re setting up the partnership for success.

Each learner’s application will include their resume and a short opening message. Their Riipen profile page may also include other links to their LinkedIn profile or portfolio for example.

If you’d like to connect with a learner before accepting their application, we’d recommend connecting for a 30 minute interview or an informal call to get to know them further.

You can schedule virtual meetings directly from the Riipen platform using the integrations with Google Meet or Zoom.

If you have clarifying questions for a learner, you can also connect using the messaging function on the Riipen platform.

Employers should arrange an onboarding session to support learners to understand the company, meet key people on your team, and feel more comfortable asking for help when they need to.

You should host a project kick off to present the scope of the project and set expectations.

‍Make sure you review the tools and technology the learners will need access to, and that you set them up with the appropriate logins, software, and access.

You should host regular check-ins for the whole project team, and should be available if learners have questions throughout the duration of the project.

You should provide mentorship throughout the project to each learner (a minimum of five hours is expected).

At project close, you should review deliverables and provide feedback on final submission and also on your experience working with each learner.

If learners are completing confidential work that you do not want shared through Riipen, you can create and sign off on a timesheet for the learner. In this case, we might also recommend that you have the learners sign an NDA before starting your project. You can use the Agreements feature to do this.

You can view each learner that has started your project by going to the “Teams" tab of your project page. To view further information about the learner’s progress or to launch a chat with them, click on their name. All your learners must start and complete your project work through the Riipen platform in order to receive the Pathways to Environmental Careers stipend.

You must have a dedicated contact for learners to answer questions and provide access to any resources they need throughout the project.

Establish your communication channels early on, and ensure learners are comfortable with the communication tools you’re using.

You should schedule regular (weekly, bi-weekly) check-ins with learners to monitor progress and address any questions as they come up.

Set project milestones on the Riipen platform. Milestones keep projects on track by defining intermediary objectives for learners.

Riipen platform tools to support connecting with learners include:

When learners submit deliverables, you will receive a notification and an email to alert you.

Final submissions may include multiple files. They could include files of the learner’s work, a detailed timesheet, or a comprehensive written summary of the work completed.

You will be prompted to complete an exit survey, and provide feedback to learners directly on Riipen. The ECO Pathways team needs to review the feedback on the platform to process learner stipend payments.

You will be able to provide private feedback to each learner and also public feedback which will be displayed on the learner's Riipen profile.

In your written feedback, make sure to highlight both the positive and the negative (if any) experiences you had when working with the learners. Were they quick to respond and professional in their communication? Were they quick learners who took initiative? Remember, any feedback you give will be publicly available on Riipen with your name attached as the author. With that in mind, remember to be courteous even if you need to provide negative feedback.

You will also receive feedback from each learner who works with you which will then display on your employer Riipen profile.

The ECO Pathways team will process learner stipend payments within 21 days of receiving the final deliverables, their exit survey, and your employer feedback.