Sustainable Business Practices

Get an introduction to the basics of environmental sustainability - energy, transportation, water use, recycling, and natural resource life cycles. Discover ways individuals, organizations, and governments can manage resources in a responsible manner, with minimal impact on natural surroundings and climate. Learn scientific methods for measuring the effectiveness of eco-friendly practices, whether in kilowatt-hours of energy use, acre-feet of reclaimed water, or greenhouse gas emissions. Find out how and why leading-edge organizations are auditing their own practices and committing to...

Sustainability professionals are frequently charged with defining the economic value of implementing environmental and social sustainability practices. In this course, students will be presented with key economic principles and identify long-term costs and benefits of sustainable practices through a variety of financial management tools, including the time value of money and Lifecycle Cost analysis. Students will explore value created for organizations through various social and environmental sustainable practices and will be able to calculate the financial benefit attributable to strategic...

Learn how to measure the impact of sustainability programs and create a plan for making changes for your business or organization. Students will learn how to set environmental baselines for energy, water, and waste to build a picture of an organization’s impact and set organizational goals. Measuring sustainability impacts is important when gaining organization-wide buy-in and understanding the stakeholders involved is an essential process in sustainability planning. During the course, students will learn about large organizations that have developed metrics, advanced methods to measure...

Today’s business leaders face a burgeoning demand for both information and management techniques to implement programs on recycling, waste management, and water conservation. These are the issues critical to the protection of our physical environment; and these issues must be addressed in an economically feasible – and preferably profitable – manner. Learn how to analyze “best practices” in business, institutions, and governments to solve the challenges presented in these three areas. Receive guidance, formulas and templates for developing successful strategies and plans for solving related...

Conservation Psychology Programs to conserve water and energy, reduce our auto-dependency, recycle, and adapt to climate change have one thing in common: to be effective, they must consider the human behavioral dimension. In this course, participants will learn how to apply psychological principles, theories and methods to understand and solve environmental problems. Gain an overview of contemporary environmental issues, with a focus on the link with human behavior. Examine psychological foundations for conservation, including commons dilemma, connectedness with nature, rational choice,...

Behavior Change Strategies for Sustainability This course focuses on the strategies and tools needed to change individual behavior and promote environmental protection. Students will learn how to assess needs, identify available resources, and design and evaluate a program for a behavior change intervention. Topics include identifying problems stemming from conventional behaviors; identifying market obstacles to behavior change; evaluating conventional practices (behavioral mapping); developing interventions to promote desired behaviors (best practices); designing a pilot program; and...

Managing a supply chain that is not only efficient, but encourages the sustainability of resources has become a challenge for companies of all sizes. Selection of socially responsible suppliers, mode of transporting raw materials, product design and disposal are just a few of the factors related to implementing a Green Supply Chain. Understand how actions taken within supply chain processes impact the depletion of resources on a global scale. Learn about successful supply chain best practices which have been implemented by corporations who have reduced their carbon footprint and improved...

Strategic planning for sustainability is one of the most sought after hard skills by today’s employers. In this course, students will gain the tools needed to identify and prioritize the issues and opportunities most relevant to their business or organization, set appropriate goals, and develop and integrate new strategies. Topics include risk assessment, materiality, stakeholder engagement, benchmarking, and metrics used to measure the success of sustainable initiatives. Students also explore strategies for working cross-functionally within an organization and with external stakeholders...

Today’s working professionals are frequently leading others through dynamic and changing landscapes. They are tasked with leading their teams to do more with less, championing new changes amid uncertainty, all while resolving interpersonal conflicts and resistance to change. Managing stakeholders can be especially challenging in times of persistent and rapid change within complex organizations. By learning foundational leadership and change management skills, team leaders and managers will be better positioned to analyze the change landscape, plan responses and achieve desired outcomes....

California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) This introductory course provides a comprehensive overview to one of the most important environmental laws in California. Participants will learn about the purpose and intent of CEQA, the CEQA review process, and the types of projects that are subject to CEQA review. Through a combination of lectures, discussions, and case studies, students will gain a deeper understanding of the CEQA process. Topics Include: The history and evolution of CEQA, including its legal foundations and legislative history The types of projects subject to CEQA review,...

Course Description This fully online course is designed for finance and investment sector C-suite executives and senior leaders. It provides an overview of climate change science, with a particular focus on the roles that human behavior and the greenhouse effect play in global warming. It also discusses the risks that companies and investors face due to climate change as well as the opportunities emerging for the private sector to drive mitigation and adaptation strategies. Learning Outcomes Describe the greenhouse effect and explain how it contributes to global warming Explain how climate...