GU Adds New Certificate in Climate Action Planning to Fight Climate Change
News Brief by Cassy Benefield
“The human species now threaten Earth’s capacity to sustain life as we know it.”
So begins the Certificate in Climate Action Planning description on its website. This professional certificate is Gonzaga University’s newest 18-week continuing education program, which begins on Aug. 30.
The program intends to help decision makers who want to lessen their carbon footprint. These include city and state employees and consultants, in addition to university, business, non-profit and parish employees.
While groups of all sizes are engaged and wanting to do the right thing, GU believes grounding their work in best practices is essential for success.
GU’s new climate action certificate aims to guide organizations from across the country on how best to achieve their local community’s climate goals.
“Helping communities create concrete plans to confront the climate crisis is urgent work,” said Brian Henning, director of the Gonzaga Center for Climate, Society and the Environment in an April 17 GU press release. “The center launched this new professional certificate as part of its mission to provide resources and opportunities to meet the unprecedented challenges facing humanity and the wider natural environment in the 21st century.”
Taught by Henning and Kara Odegard, former Spokane City Council Manager of Sustainability Initiatives and founder and owner of the social impact consulting company Measure Meant, the course will cover working with politically-diverse stakeholders and will discuss strategies accounting for and lowering greenhouse gas emissions. It will also discuss how to conduct climate impact assessments, how to pursue community engagement and much more.
“This is not simply a check-the-box course, but a rich, skill-based program that challenges participants to consider new perspectives and approaches,” reads the website.
Like Gonzaga’s other professional certificates, this program is designed for people with varying levels of education who have a passion for responding to climate change, said Rachelle Strawther, director of Gonzaga’s Center for Lifelong Learning in the same press release.
“Developing the ability to create a climate action plan is not only responsive to the needs of our natural environment, but a much-needed professional skill that will likely increase in demand nationally across multiple sectors,” Strawther said.
The online program costs $3,500. Grading happens on a pass/fail basis and will count as seven continuing education credits.
Organizations can receive a 10% discount for four or more registrations from the same organization.
Visit the certificate’s website for more information.
