A workforce needs assessment survey carried out by the Greenhouse Gas Management Institute concluded that:
- US organizations are ill-prepared for emerging regulatory emissions reporting;
- Carbon markets are not “up-to-snuff”; and
- Competency concerns loom with expansion of climate programs.
A set of recent reports in Nature confirmed that new international agreements will tax the capabilities of nations and organizations to carry out the supporting accounting activities.
This certificate is designed to deliver the latest fundamental knowledge and skills to practicing environmental/sustainability professionals to enable them to advance their careers by expanding into this emerging area.
The certificate can be completed through traditional on-campus coursework or through CSU Online.
Students interested in graduate work should refer to the Graduate and Professional Bulletin.
Learning Objectives
Upon successful completion of the program, students will be able to:
- Apply quantitative and qualitative methods to the study of greenhouse gas emission management.
- Explain greenhouse gas sources and sinks and how they might be managed.
- Discuss current issues in greenhouse gas policies and climate change.
- Evaluate the linkages between socioeconomic and ecological processes driving increases in atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations.
- Apply methods of conducting GHG mitigation analyses following current ISO standards.
- Design, evaluate, set up, test and operate GHG information management systems and GHG assurance processes that are appropriate for specific applications and that conform to applicable standards.
- Carry out basic greenhouse gas assessments using systems approaches and integrative methods, including the application of life cycle analysis and other numerical quantification tools.
Effective Fall 2019
Additional coursework may be required due to prerequisites.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses: | ||
| ESS 524 | Foundations for Carbon/Greenhouse Gas Mgmt | 3 |
| ESS 542 | Greenhouse Gas Policies | 2 |
| ESS 543/ATS 543 | Global Climate Change | 2 |
| Select one course from the following: | 3-4 | |
| Animal Nutrition, Emissions, and Management | ||
| Applications in Greenhouse Gas Inventories | ||
| Life Cycle Assessment for Sustainability | ||
| Ecology of Forest Production | ||
| Program Total Credits: | 10-11 | |
*This certificate may have courses in common with other graduate certificates. A student may earn more than one certificate, but a given course may be counted only in one certificate.