Interest in a commercial issue but no hard evidence to support it

[Mash239]

Hey everyone, I've recently gained an interest in climate change and renewable energy because I have been reading up on this online. I haven't done anything substantial (like internships and whatnot) and I don't really know how to explain why this interests me, other than "it is an interesting topic", and people should be interested in climate change. I have a decent amount of knowledge about general sustainable finance and I use this in my commercial awareness questions in application forms.

Do I need something to back up my interest or is it fine to simply say that I have an interest because I am interested in decarbonisation and to reduce global warming? If so, does anyone have suggestions on what I can do to build this up tangibly?

Happy to hear all thoughts!

 

[Manifesting]

I think doing substantial research about it online already counts as evidence since you are demonstrating interest. Here are some things I would recommend that you do to strengthen the way you can talk about this in applications.

• I would recommend that you complete Clifford Chance's Climate Change Global Virtual Internship on Forage (formerly InsideSherpa), which is only comprised of a 3 tasks, so you it shouldn't require more than a handful focused hours to complete. That way you are also able to demonstrate that you know what legal work in this are would entail.
• Network with people via events or through using your network/cold messaging. You could talk to lawyers or practitioners in the field and keep up with developments happening and understanding how they influence the commercial work. Writing about this will then show that you have taken the initiative to go beyond just reading about this issue online.
• See if you can take up any extracurriculars or volunteer-work in this area that could support your interest and show how you are trying to make a difference. Taking up coursework, whether in school or online, might also be helpful.

I hope this helps!

 

[Lumree]

Also take a look at The Chancery Lane Project - you could get some volunteering experience either through assisting with drafting climate change precedents or taking part in hackathons. You can then align that experience with why commercial law.