Who We Are
The Mickey Leland Environmental Internship Corporation (MLEIC) is a 501c3 established in 2018 and comprised of a diverse group of business leaders in public sector, higher education, private industry and non-profits. We are dedicated to advancing the next generation of leaders who are passionate about protecting the environment and impacting our world. MLEIC serves as the non-profit foundation of the Mickey Leland Environmental Internship Program (MLEIP). The MLEIC is managed by a volunteer Board of Directors.
OUR INTERNS ARE
TRANSFORMING THE PLANET
Our mission is to cultivate citizens of the world by supporting the Mickey Leland Environmental Internship Program (MLEIP), a paid summer internship program administered by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).
Recognized as a premier environmental internship program in the nation
MLEIP was formed in 1992 to honor the work and legacy of former U.S. Congressman Mickey Leland. Since its inception, MLEIP has placed 2,700+ college students in internships across Texas. Hundreds of college students from throughout the nation apply annually for this unique opportunity to learn from and collaborate with scientists, engineers, environmental experts, and business leaders.
READY TO CHANGE
THE WORLD?
APPLY FOR A PAID MLEIP INTERNSHIP
MLEIP Class of 2024
THE HISTORY OF MLEIP
LEARN MORE
WE'RE A DIVERSE INTERNSHIP
PROGRAM FOR WORLD CHANGERS
We are well represented by women, minorities, and first-generation college students majoring primarily in STEM. Students majoring in law, accounting, business, criminal justice, finance, liberal arts, political science, and public administration are also selected.
In 2025, we proudly celebrate 34 years of cultivating citizen leaders whose impact and influence have the power to transform the planet in a manner that Congressman Mickey Leland had only begun to imagine.
WHAT WE DO
REAL WORK EXPERIENCE
Provide meaningful work experience via structured internship assignments and networking opportunities that develop interns’ marketable skills and build their self-confidence.
MENTORSHIP FOR
EMERGING LEADERS
Serve as mentors for the next generation of environmental stewards and business leaders who are preparing to launch their career.
TALENT MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS
Promote Leland interns as critical talent management solutions for Texas employers in public sector, private industry, and non-profits.
STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS
Foster public-private partnerships between organizations with a presence in Texas and the Mickey Leland Environmental Internship Program (MLEIP).
Our Board of Directors
Jackson Walker L.L.P.
Honors College
University of Houston
Jackson Walker, L.L.P.
Former MLEIP Intern
North Central Texas
Council of Governments
Former MLEIP Intern
Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality
Energy Council
Braun Intertec
Oncor Electric Delivery
Former MLEIP Intern
Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality
Texas Water Development Board
TRC Companies
Capital Markets Group
(Adapt Companies)
Concordia University
Former MLEIP Intern
Baker Botts L.L.P.
Honoring the Work and Legacy of
Congressman Mickey Leland
Congressman Mickey Leland was a humanitarian and a passionate advocate for the poor and hungry in America and abroad, traveling the world to bring attention and resources to bear. During terms representing Houston in the Texas state legislature and later in Congress, he chaired the House Select Committee on Hunger, and fought for equitable access to healthcare and environmental rights.
His activism was steeped in his roots as a student in the civil rights movement. In 1989, he died, along with 14 others, leading a hunger relief mission to refugee camps in the Sudan. He left behind a world that continues to mourn and remember him, Leland interns who further his legacy, and three sons.
-Alison Leland
Professor of Political Science, The Honors College, University of Houston
