The University of British Columbia, Continuing Studies Centre for Sustainability training
Applied Project Management Course
Working as a team, develop the full set of project management deliverables in a simulated case study project. Apply your technical skills (Project Manager’s Toolkit), your soft skills (Project Manager’s Skill Set) and your knowledge in a realistic project management environment. Playing the role of project manager, teams assess project situations and make professional judgments, plan and manage the execution of project work, analyze and solve problems, and overcome roadblocks that stand in the way of achieving project success. This final capstone course draws together the themes and learning from the previous five courses.
Agile Delivery Methods Course
Agile approaches are changing how software is developed and the impact is being felt far outside the technology teams in which they originated. But there are many different agile frameworks out there. How do you choose the right one? This course provides an introduction to the lean and agile principles on which iterative and incremental development is based, and the trends accelerating agile adoption across many industries. You’ll discover how agile frameworks such as Scrum and Kanban differ from the traditional product development lifecycle and determine which approach to use, given the context in which you work. You will learn the core frameworks of iterative agile methods, like Scrum, and flow-based agile methods, like Kanban. You will see how agile project management practices combine with agile engineering practices, and what to expect from an agile team.Applied Program Management Course
Using two real-life urban city sustainability programs (Connected Urban Development and SMART 2020), learn to develop, manage and execute strategic programs, champion change and communicate the associated benefits. Create various program artifacts including a program plan, status reports, and closing and transition documents. Use progressive elaboration and transition documents to keep these artifacts current during a program life cycle and react to various expectations during the process. Experience the challenges of managing a program that engages new technologies, information and issues concerning sustainability and climate change.
Energy Modelling for the Built Environment
This course can be applied to the UBC Award of Achievement in Sustainability Management. This course offers a conceptual understanding of energy modeling to professionals including developers, architects, designers, engineers, project managers, planners, etc. The focus is on creating a common terminology and jargon, understanding essential principles of energy modeling, understanding the need for energy modeling and business practices, and learning about future directions, requirements, and government policy.
Greening the Supply Chain: Responsible Business Practices
This course can be applied to the UBC Award of Achievement in Sustainability Management. Procurement practices and supply chain management are key components of an organization’s sustainability strategy. They can help reduce an organization’s environmental footprint and control costs. This online course offers a comprehensive introduction to the emerging area of green supply chain management. Learn the perspectives, practical tools, and resources needed to make responsible and effective supply decisions. Course topics include key drivers and imperatives in green procurement, barriers and resistance, best practices, standards, and benchmarks. The course is designed for procurement professionals, those with an interest in advancing the sustainability agenda in their organization, or those needing to adapt to changing customer demands
UBC Award of Achievement in Sustainability Management
The UBC Award of Achievement in Sustainability Management delivers a clear understanding of how sustainability extends through all areas of an organization and how to create holistic sustainability initiatives that make an impact. The courses within the program address how to approach new market opportunities and challenges, resource scarcity and greenhouse gas emissions management in an increasingly complex and globalized world. The program is designed to challenge traditional practices and teach you how to help transform an organization to support a sustainable future.
Leadership
Introduction to Sustainability: From Origins to Applications
Sustainability is a complex issue when viewed from a triple-bottom line perspective of people, planet, and profits. This course provides a comprehensive overview of the origins of sustainability and the key concepts and drivers that are putting sustainability issues front and centre in our lives. Topics include climate change, eco-efficiency, life cycle analysis, carbon trading, tracking and reporting, and the evolving regulatory framework supporting sustainability. Designed to give you a practical understanding of sustainability and how organizations can shift to becoming more sustainable, this course is an important introduction to the field with a significant focus on organizational change.Sustainable Communities (formerly Strategies for Sustainable Communities)
How do you develop a sustainable community? Having a clear vision and ongoing process of evaluation and review are the first steps toward fostering a sustainable community strategic plan from a systems perspective. This course will review planning approaches and sustainability frameworks for development from social and science-based principles. Explore topics such as transportation, planning, food security, material efficiency and waste, governance, engagement processes, indicator tools, and social and environmental factors. Numerous case studies from Canada, Europe, and the global South will be described. Apply the tools from this course and learn how to develop a community action plan.