During the summer of 2024, Ali Bernstein (MBA '25) interned as an NYU Stern MBA Human Rights Fellow at New Balance. Read on to learn more about her time there:

Name: Ali Bernstein

Year: 2025

Specialization: General Management

I had a wonderful experience this summer as the Responsible Leadership MBA Intern at New Balance. The team quickly brought me up to speed with the company’s sustainability and human rights initiatives, upcoming changes to the industry, and international reporting guidelines. In speaking with leaders across the organization, I learned about product lifecycle, fair wage standards, reducing waste, and much more. As an MBA intern, I was also able to join a larger group of strategy interns for coffee chats with New Balance executives, including members of the C-Suite.

My mid-summer deliverable was a presentation on my benchmarking analysis regarding double materiality assessments, which will be required due to upcoming CSRD mandates in Europe. For my final deliverable, I presented my gap analysis of New Balance factory wage data, which will be used to help ensure that workers are being paid a fair wage based on global standards.

I am looking forward to bringing my learnings from New Balance to my sustainability courses at Stern and contribute a much deeper level of knowledge on challenges and opportunities companies are facing through the lens of sustainability and human rights. This internship was an invaluable experience that I know will prepare me for any professional role I have in the future. Throughout the summer I honed skills in data analysis, presented my findings to the team, and collaborated with cross-functional teams across the company. These skills will help me make an impact at any organization and allow me to be a champion for sustainable initiatives that benefit business while bettering the world.