Greenhouse Gas Accounting, Graduate Certificate

In addition to University Requirements:

• Complete individual plan requirements.

Please note that students may be able to use some courses to meet more than one requirement. Contact your advisor for details.

Purpose Statement

Currently, there are over 40 developed and developing countries that have mandatory emission reporting programs, with many others voluntarily reporting their emissions. Regardless of the nature of these reporting practices, entities and nations are increasingly moving towards quantifying and reporting their GHG emissions as a step towards proactive risk management, improving their energy efficiency, and/or demonstrating their commitment to environmental issues. This online certificate program will provide students and professionals with a means to gain technical skills required to quantify, report, analyze and verify GHG emissions associated with individual products or commodities, business/corporation operations, and communities, including cities and Universities. It will also train individuals in how to use reported GHG emissions to design effective emission reduction and mitigation strategies. Given the scale and challenges of climate change and the associated impacts, there is a strong need for professionals with a robust skillset to track, report, and manage GHG emissions. This certificate will provide that training.

Student Learning Outcomes
 

• Identify, manage, and track activity data for greenhouse gas emission calculations, and apply and/or derive appropriate emission factors for that activity data.
• Quantify and report greenhouse gas emissions associated with individual products or commodities, business/corporation operations, and communities using appropriate protocols and standards.
• Verify the greenhouse gas emissions reported by others using recognized standards and procedures.
• Use reported GHG emissions, together with appropriate economic metrics, to design and justify effective emission management, reduction, and mitigation strategies. 
• Communicate findings of greenhouse gas inventory, emission trends over time, and/or emission reduction recommendations using multiple methods such as written reports, professional presentations, or oral/written press releases.