Program Brochure - UC Irvine Extension - University of California ...

Education and Business
Sustainable
Solutions & Practices
Certificate Program
extension.uci.edu/sussp

University of California, Irvine Extension’s
Improve Your
Career Options
with a Professional
Certificate
professional certificate and specialized
studies programs help you increase or
enhance your current skills or prepare for a
new career. Courses are highly practical and
instructors are qualified leaders in their field.
Convenient online courses make it easy to
learn on your own time, in your own way.
A certificate bearing the UC seal signifies
a well-known, uncompromising standard of
excellence.
Sustainable Solutions & Practices
Certificate Program
Sustainability is so much more than simply “going
green.” In reality, the expanding field of sustainability is
immensely important in virtually every facet of life, and
ever core subject of global and societal study – from
economics to sociology, from biology to business.
The fully online Sustainable Solutions and Practices
Certificate Program focuses on understanding and
applying best practices in sustainability from the
community level to the global stage. Providing an
interdisciplinary approach to this wide-spectrum field of
study, the program integrates sustainable development,
sociological awareness and environmentalism with
business management, leadership and reporting strategies
to achieve a well-rounded and informed basis for a
career in the field of sustainability.
Program Benefits
• Design and deploy sustainability plans in multiple,
varied work environments
• Develop strategies for the implementation of new
sustainable improvement methodologies
• Evaluate and report on performance, impact and
outcome of activities in the sustainable arena
• Identify current and future key environmental regulatory
compliance legislation that impacts organizational strategy,
planning and operations

Who Should Attend
• Individuals seeking to enter the sustainability field
• Staff members of grass-roots organizations
• Public sector leaders and policy makers
• Sustainable technology analysts
• Entrepreneurial professionals
• Sustainability practitioners
• Small business owners
• Process managers
• Project managers
• Change leaders
Certificate Requirements
Students must complete all required courses for a total
of 15.5 units to earn the Sustainable Solutions and
Practices Certificate. Students must earn a grade of
“C” or better in each course in order to be eligible for
the certificate. All requirements must be completed
within five (5) years after the student enrolls in his/her
first course. Students not pursuing the certificate
are welcome to take as many individual courses
as they wish.
For more information:
Daniel Powers, Program Representative
(949) 824-5592
powersd@uci.edu
extension.uci.udu/sussp

“The sustainably field is expanding. The job market
ebbs and flows in tandem with the economy.
Right now, however, things are definitely on the
uptick. Big companies are hiring again, at a more
senior level. Over the last couple of years, I also
see the hiring of support staff, particularly around
reducing energy, reducing waste, and water
conservation.”
– Ellen Weinreb, Owner & President
Weinreb Group (Forbes.com interview)
Advisory Committee
David W. Lloyd, M.S., Chief Engineer, Boeing
Christina Schwerdtfeger, Ph.D., Owner, Coto
Consulting
Jesse Baker, Ph.D., Owner, Ecofficiency
Richard Demerjian, M.S., Director, Office of
Environmental Planning & Sustainability, UC Irvine
Judy Yorke, PE, CPP, Owner & Principal Engineer,
Yorke Engineering, LLC
Free Webinars
U.S. Green Building Council
UC Irvine Extension is an USGBC Education Provider
committed to enhancing the ongoing professional development
of the building industry and LEED Professionals
through high-quality education programs. As a USGBC
Education Provider, UC Irvine Extension has agreed to
abide by the USGBC-established operational and educational
criteria, and is subject to annual reviews and audits
for quality assurance.
Free webinars are offered several times a year and are
packed with information about the Sustainable Solutions
and Practices program, courses being offered in
upcoming quarters, and sustainability industry tips and
trends. Visit extension.uci.edu/events to view the webinar
schedule, enroll in an upcoming free event or view
previous webinar recordings.
For course schedule: extension.uci.edu/sussp

Curriculum
Required Courses
Macro-Sustainability: Global Awareness
SOCECOL X417.27 (4 units)
Sustainability has become critical to the survival of our
ecological and social communities. The challenges we
face are immense; environmental degradation, climate
change, pollution and waste, increasing resource
consumption, and short-sighted economic and political
policies are all placing incredible pressures on the planet
and on human societies. It is imperative that we understand
the root causes of these challenges and move
rapidly to develop and implement sustainable solutions.
This broad overview course focuses on global and
national sustainability challenges, and discusses the
interrelated drivers, principles, and practices that can
lead to a more sustainable world.
Micro-Sustainability: Local Impact
SOCECOL X417.28 (4 units)
Understanding sustainability challenges at a global level
is crucial to the expansion of practices and solutions –
which are rightly done at a local level in beginning
stages. There is truth to the bumper-sticker adage “Think
globally, act locally.” In Global Awareness, students learn
about the overarching challenges in the modern world
that threaten ecologies and social communities, and
Local Impact will guide students on the community-level
problems, and actions that can be taken to ameliorate
the threats to our immediate ecosystems. Discussion
topics will include consumer behavior, transportation
and food challenges, green marketing and “green wash”
campaigns, sustainability of built environments, energy
consumption, waste management, and development of
an individual sustainability plan.
Corporate Social Responsibility
MGMT X430.12 (3 units)
The explosion of corporate social responsibility into
mainstream business decision-making has been fueled
by an unprecedented number of recent environmental,
financial, legal, social and climate events. This broad
overview course introduces, identifies, reviews and
assesses the interrelated sustainability motivators,
drivers, principles and practices that have become the
new imperative for business and financial sense.
Framework for Sustainable Leadership
SOCECL X417.21 (3 units)
All sustainable change and actions must begin with a
framework for organizational transformation and problem
solving. Strategic leadership is central to the success
of organizational change initiatives designed to create
positive impacts for society and the environment.
Leading sustainable change requires a life cycle
approach, at a local, regional and global scale, that can
overlay every major business decision. This type of
approach bridges vision and knowledge with systems
thinking. It integrates corporate profitability with responsible
actions that reflects the organization’s essence
and core values. Gain the skills necessary to identify all
of the critical stakeholders and their interrelationships,
and measure the effects of social and environmental
stakeholder benefits that are unique to “the responsible
business.”
Sustainability Reporting
SOCECOL X417.26 (1.5 units)
This course introduces students to the typical drivers
and stakeholders associated with sustainability programs.
Topics include and overview of the most common
available reporting protocols, factors to consider when
selecting KPIs and metrics, and how to establish goals
and describe performance on a quantitative or
qualitative basis.

Sustainable Solutions & Practices
Certificate Program
extension.uci.edu/sussp (949) 824-5592
Printed on Recycled Paper
01.20.14