Sustainability Certificate

Students walking by SLC patio

Outcomes | Structure | Registration | Session decriptions

Waterloo's Sustainability Office, in collaboration with Organizational and Human Development, is excited to offer a free Sustainability Certificate for employees of the University. The certificate builds upon the University's Environmental Sustainability Strategy's goal of embedding sustainability actions into campus culture. It recognizes that all employees will have a role to play in building a sustainable campus.

Outcomes

At the end of the certificate, employees will:

Have a basic understanding of key local and global sustainability issues, as well as efforts underway to address them
Become familiar with the University’s sustainability objectives, contributions to global challenges, and connections to the Strategic Plan
Understand tools and resources to integrate sustainability into everyday actions on campus and at home
Identify the relevance of sustainability for their home department

Structure

To receive the certificate, an employee must:

Complete all seven sessions (can be completed over multiple terms)
Come to all session having read the pre-reads and be ready to engage with colleagues
Complete the short multiple choice quizzes after each session (5 minutes each)

Please note that SUS101 is a prerequisite for all other sessions and must be completed before attending subsequent sessions. SUS102-106 may be taken in any order of preference, and SUS107 is a capstone once all other courses are completed.

Registration

You can register for each session through Workday by following these instructions:

Log into your Workday profile
Click on the Learning icon
Click on Browse Learning (right hand menu)
Search the course title in the search bar and click on the course
Click Enroll (bottom left) and select the offering you'd like to attend

Note: We will schedule additional offerings based on demand. Please register on the waitlist if you are interested in taking a session so we can contact you as additional offerings are made available. Cancellations with less than 24 hours notice or no-shows will be subject to a $50 charge to their department.

Group learning: Winter 2021 course outline

Winter 2021 sessions will be held remotely via Microsoft Teams.

Course	Session Dates and Locations
SUS101: Introduction to Sustainability	Thursday, January 28 \| 10:30am-12pm
SUS102: Energy and Climate Change	Thursday, February 11 \| 10:30am-12pm
SUS103: Sustainable Travel	Thursday, February 25 \| 10:30am-12pm
SUS104: Healthy and Sustainable Food	Thursday, March 11 \| 10:30am-12pm
SUS105: Reducing Your Material Footprint	Thursday, March 25 \| 10:30am-12pm
SUS106: Biodiversity and Nature	Thursday, April 8 \| 10:30am-12pm
SUS107: Sustainability Leadership	Thursday, April 22 \| 10:30am-12pm

Independent learning: LEARN

Sessions can also be completed independently through a new course offering on LEARN. The content is the same, but learners will complete in-course activities, quizzes, and reflections in the place of group discussions and activities.

To register, login to your LEARN account and search for the Sustainability Certificate under Self-Registration. Employee completion records will be migrated over to Workday upon completion of the final module.

The seven modules will be released on Monday, September 21, 2020.

Note: Employees can choose the group learning OR independent learning stream, but cannot mix and match courses from the two streams at this time.

Session descriptions

Introduction to Sustainability (SUS101)

In this introductory session, attendees will participate in an interactive discussion about what sustainability means, key global issues, the relevance for academic institutions, and what Waterloo is doing.

Note: Prior to attending this module, participants will be asked to complete the Sustainability Literacy Assessment. This is an internationally-recognized test to benchmark existing knowledge about sustainability issues. It is comprised of 30 multiple choice questions. There is no passing grade for the purpose of the Waterloo's Sustainability Certificate. Login information will be provided.

Energy and Climate Change (SUS102)

In this session, attendees will participate in an interactive discussion about climate change, from the local to global levels, and learn how Waterloo is involved. It will explore both the science and personal action, and empower attendees with tools and resources to understand and reduce their personal energy and carbon footprint, at home and at work.

Sustainable Travel (SUS103)

In this session, attendees will discuss the role of sustainable transportation in terms of environmental impact, community development, and personal health. The discussion will outline programs and initiatives available on campus to support employees, and infrastructure development across the community.

Healthy and Sustainable Food (SUS104)

In this session, attendees will join a guided discussion about the impacts that food systems can have on health and the environment. It will focus on current issues such as local food, meat-based diets, and food labelling (such as organic, genetically-modified organisms, and eco-certifications), and empower employees to make better purchasing decisions.

Reducing Your Material Footprint (SUS105)

In this session, attendees will explore the concept of the circular economy, and how this is relevant to individual purchasing decisions and product disposal. It will challenge participants to think differently about how they buy items at home and at work, and will provide interactive waste reduction training and resources, including composting and recycling.

Biodiversity and Nature (SUS106)

In this session, attendees will explore broad global issues related to biodiversity and human impact on the natural environment, as well as how ecosystems impact humans. It will discuss value that nature can bring to employees in terms of mental health and aesthetics, and ways to integrate nature in the office and protect it at home.

Sustainability Leadership (SUS107)

In this session, attendees will participate in an interactive discussion about how they can step into sustainability-related leadership roles and support their colleagues and peers. It will provide an introduction to communicating sustainability, outline “behaviour change” basics, and review on-campus initiatives such as the Green Office program.