Shift The Scales: Why Equilibrium Takes Its Internship Program Seriously
If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, it’s this: the right interns can help create a meaningful impact on the trajectory of a company.
I first came across this thought at a conference in 2015, where Kunal Bahl, the founder of Snapdeal and Titan Capital in a conversation with Shradha Sharma, founder of YourStory said something along the lines of “The quality and velocity of a startup is a function of the interns it attracts”. It’s been close to a decade to that event and I do hope he’ll pardon the paraphrase, but the essence of his statement stuck with me years after I heard it.
I read a variation of this again in a tweet from him in 2020.
This was the time I was contemplating starting up, and the thought stuck with me deeply. I was clear that if I were ever to build a company, having strong interns working at the organisation was something I’d strongly advocate for. Moreover, I would actively involve myself in structuring their growth program.
One of the reasons this philosophy struck a chord was my own early experiences — whether it was interning at an e-waste recycling facility in Indianapolis or working with early-stage companies during the Kalaari Fellowship, a program led by Vani Kola to nurture young graduates into the world of India’s startup and venture investing ecosystem. I remember the feeling of being given agency to explore, question, and contribute. My ideas weren’t just heard, they were valued. That sense of ownership shaped how I approach work today, and it’s the same culture we foster at Equilibrium.
When we started Climes, and now Equilibrium (our projects focussed spin-off), I knew we wanted to build a program that wasn’t just about getting extra hands on deck. We wanted smart, driven people who would come in, challenge the way we think, and contribute in ways we couldn’t predict. And over the years, that’s exactly what we’ve seen. Our interns haven’t just assisted; they’ve shaped the way we work.
Interns Who’ve Helped Shape The Company
I could list names and roles, but the best way to explain the impact of our interns is to show you how deeply they’ve influenced our company.
Yash, who I met at Terra.do, joined us as a student intern in his final-year in college, where he worked part-time in helping shape our early thinking on the carbon-finance opportunity. Soon after graduating college, he joined us full-time as employee #1, where he’s taken on roles & responsibilities across the board from shaping our supply-side projects in regenerative agriculture and agroforestry to setting up our first carbon-accounting modules. His impact on the company has been immense, and after 4-years of working with us, he recently started his own D2C company - Dr. Water. We couldn't be more prouder of what he’s done for us, and are excited for his entrepreneurial journey.
Adrija and Sumeet, both final year students at IIT Kharagpur, joined us at a time when we had just received our first grant from Terra, and were in the process of raising our pre-seed. It was early days, and it’s fair to say both of them took a blind bet on us. They laid out the frameworks for our go-to-market across categories of industries, whom we should be speaking to for carbon neutrality, and also played a critical role in helping us partner with air travel aggregators like MakeMyTrip and Yatra. Adrija now is an investment analyst at American Express & Sumeet is an Associate Product Manager at Navi.
We then had Jayashree, an MBA intern from Wharton, who joined us when we were still figuring out our approach to carbon finance. Her 3-month work and research helped lay the foundation for what has since become one of our core strengths today. She currently works in the climate & sustainability practice at BCG in North America.
Our first financial model for our pilot and scale-up regenerative agriculture project was created by Tarun, an intern from St. Stephens. His ability to distill complex agri-finance concepts and break it down for us clearly stood out. Currently an associate at BCG, he is now on his way to becoming an investment analyst at a leading private equity firm.
Siya, who just graduated from Hindu college, spent 6 months with us prior to joining Bain. She came in at a time when we were starting to scale as an organisation, and wore multiple hats with ease — impacting growth, marketing, hiring, and even product. She streamlined processes and left an impact across the board. Her ability to roll up her sleeves and get stuff done is something that I admire.
Tanisi joined us right after college at IIT Delhi to work on new initiatives that we, as a business, could potentially grow and compound into. Her insights and hands-on work have shaped our core thesis on which categories of carbon removal we are focused on. (More details about this coming soon. Follow us on LinkedIn to stay updated!)
And finally, believe it or not, we actually had someone take a semester off from college to work with us! Sara, who is currently at Harvard finishing college, worked with us for 4-months, fine-tuning the dMRV and impact metrics on our product. On Anirudh’s skill-full nudging, she seriously considered contemplating quitting college, however I’m glad that she’s back at university getting her degree. All this is just a peek at the depth of ownership interns can take here!
To reiterate, these aren’t just side projects. These are contributions that have shaped the direction of Equilibrium.
PSA: Folks, we’re all for the enthusiasm and the drive to hustle — but we encourage you to return to college and get your degrees first!
What We Look For in Our Interns
So, what makes a great intern at Equilibrium? It’s not about having a perfect resume. It’s about mindset. We look for:
Fresh energy & ideas: People who challenge our assumptions and push us to think differently.
Diverse perspectives: Whether your background is in engineering, business, policy, research, philosophy, history or event art, we value unique perspectives and processes. They keep us on our toes and challenge the status quo.
Hustle & hunger: We’re a fast-moving company, and we love working with people who take ownership, navigate ambiguity, and want to build something real.
Commitment to excellence: We like individuals who have shown precedence of excellence in whatever they’ve pursued. Be it art, sport, or culture — if you’re someone who likes to redefine boundaries, we’d love to have you.
That said, there will be certain functional skills that would be advantageous to bring to the table, and primary responsibilities we’d expect you to own.
Presentation skills: We’re in an industry that involves a LOT of data. The ability to distil complex data into easy-to-consume formats and communication will be a valuable asset.
Problem-solving: This sounds fairly straightforward, but let’s face it — problems never really are. You need to be able to look at challenging situations from a solution-oriented lens, and move quickly from analysis to action.
Telescopic vision: The ability to zoom in on details, but also zoom out to consider the bigger picture. Because this industry, and the work that we do, is all about how the micro affects the macro.
What We Offer in Return
Interning at Equilibrium is a hands-on experience. This isn’t about sitting on the sidelines. It’s about solving real problems, in real time. You get to work on something real. These aren’t theoretical projects and presentations. Your work will have a direct impact on our strategy and execution. You will have the opportunity to analyse and solve problems, end-to-end. You won’t just research; you’ll take ideas from concept to reality. And you’ll get to experience startup life firsthand. If you want to know what it takes to build something in a fast-moving, nascent industry, this is the place to be.
Looking Ahead: Join Us
This program is something we take seriously, and we plan to keep scaling it. Climate tech is still an emerging industry, and we want to give talented, curious people the best possible ringside seat to what it takes to build something meaningful.
This year, while we will continue bringing in generalists from engineering and B-schools, we want to broaden the base of this program and invite individuals from backgrounds in core sciences, climate research, impact, finance and agriculture.
If this sounds exciting, we’d love to hear from you.
How to Apply?
Via this form. Attaching any proof of work that you’re proud of is super helpful.
What’s the time commitment?
A duration ranging from 90 (minimum) to 180 days.
Where will you be working out of ?
Our office in Bangalore
How much will you pay me?
Varies from Candidate to Candidate - But the range is INR 30,000 - 1,00,000 per month
Come be part of something that’s growing fast, solving real problems, and shaping the future of carbon removal. We’re looking for people who want to build, and we hope that’s you.
And lastly, while Kunal’s original tweet was inspirational in itself, I couldn’t agree more with the first 2 comments on it as well.
For those seeking out full-time opportunities, we are hiring across board. Explore more details here. Follow the details of our journey on LinkedIn & Instagram