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The Buzz
"Climate change is
affecting communities, public health, natural
resources, ecosystems, economies, infrastructure,
and supply chains across the Nation – now and into
the foreseeable future. Because climate change
effects are far-reaching and complex, and our
understanding of climate change is rapidly growing,
responding to climate change will pose new or
unfamiliar challenges for many of leaders. It's
important that standards are established for
ensuring that leaders can get the knowledge and
skills they need to help the nation respond to the
threats that climate change poses."
- Paul Wagner (Former Deputy Associate Director
for Climate Preparedness, White House Council on
Environmental Quality)
"This initiative will help us build the
institution-wide capacity we need to drive
large-scale climate adaptation initiatives and
prepare communities like South Florida for the very
significant implications of climate change."
- Susanne Torriente (Assistant City Manager, City
of Fort Lauderdale)"Credentialing
Climate Change Officers is critical to
professionalizing this emerging discipline.
Climate change affects virtually every business.
Understanding how climate change impacts
business strategy and planning for - and
adapting to - that impact is fundamental to
success. Businesses with an officer who has
earned a Climate Governance Certificate will be
a step ahead of their competition. I applaud
ACCO for this important accomplishment."
- Peter Gray
(Partner, McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP and
Co-Founder of ACCO)
"The Climate Governance Certificate addresses an
important constituency within ACCO’s vision of
empowering a professional workforce to manage the
risks and opportunities associated with climate
change."
- Michael Mondshine (Vice President,
Sustainability and Energy, WSP and ACCO Board Chair) |
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The Climate Governance Certificate requires
approximately 42 hours of training and completion of a
Practicum Project.
Core Curriculum
The following eight (8) CCO Training
BootcampsTM are required for
the certificate. These technical, deep-dive programs take place
in half-day sessions and are taught by instructor teams overseen
by the CCO CertificationTM
Oversight Committee. Bootcamps are offered at ACCO’s
conferences, as well as through a suite of regional training
workshops hosted by ACCO or held in conjunction with third-party
hosted events.
Additionally, ACCO will be establishing a third-party
accreditation process for institutions that will be teaching
core curriculum requirements and electives that will satisfy the
certificate requirements. These third-party courses will be
offered by academic institutions, government entities and
private sector training organizations, and will be made
available in the coming months.
|
Catalog ID |
CCO Training Bootcamp |
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Climate-101 |
Understanding Climate Science & the
Latest Projections |
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This
bootcamp will provide participants with
an overview of the current state of
knowledge on climate science, an
understanding of how climate projections
are made, practical implications of
these projections for different
socioeconomic sectors, and how effective
communication and education can be used
to mobilize your organization for
action. Attendees will learn how to use
climate projections to identify climate
related risks and vulnerabilities,
understand how climate science can be
used for strategic planning, and
develop/prioritize actions and foresee
potential outcomes. |
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Climate-201 |
Identifying
Climate Hazards & Conducting
Vulnerability Assessments |
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This
introductory bootcamp will provide
participants with a flexible process,
knowledge of existing climate data and
tools, and a template to help assess an
organization's (or region's) climate
risks, adapt to these risks and begin to
imbed and implement the changes into
existing systems and processes.
Attendees will learn how to define
climate-related hazards, identify
existing and future risks,
vulnerabilities and strengths, create
stakeholder partnerships, and
develop/prioritize actions and
opportunities. |
|
Economics-101 |
The Economics of
Climate Change |
|
Climate
change is already having profound
effects on world economies. Disruptions
and costs associated with extreme
events, sea level rise, heat waves,
ecological degradation and resource
scarcity will only increase as global
warming progresses, and far outweigh any
short-term costs of meaningful climate
action. In this bootcamp, instructors
will lay out the basic economic argument
for businesses and governments to tackle
climate change mitigation and
adaptation, and show such action can
safeguard the stability of our societies
in generations to come. |
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Enterprise-201 |
Analyzing &
Quantifying Climate Risk, Assessing
Materiality and Disclosing Climate Risk |
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From
global supply chain disruptions to local
power outages, from rising commodity
prices to facilities flooding, climate
change hazards and their cascading
effects can have major consequences on
companies’ financial results. This
bootcamp will address whether and how
climate risks should be included in
financial disclosure and other public
reports. The session will include a
methodical breakdown of climate impacts
and an overview of legal requirements
and best practices in financial
disclosure, through a combination of
interactive discussions and scenario
analysis and industry expert
presentations. |
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GHG-101 |
Basics of GHG
Accounting, Reporting & Disclosing GHG
Emissions |
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Beginning
with GHG accounting principles, this
bootcamp will cover the essentials of
voluntary and mandatory reporting of GHG
emissions, as well as data collection,
calculating emissions and the
verification process. The bootcamp
instructors will also share their
approaches and experience with GHG
reporting and climate related
disclosures (to include emissions, risks
and opportunities). |
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GHG-102 |
The Fundamentals
of the Energy, Water & Food Nexus |
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Energy, agriculture and
water systems are inextricably linked to one another. As
such it is important to understand the intersection of
these three systems since a disruption present serious
risks to a company or organization and lead to cascading
impacts. This session will cover key concepts of the
energy, water & food and explore examples of how these
interdependencies can play out in a warming world.
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Governance-101 |
Engaging
Stakeholders & Establishing Strategies
for Leading Organizational Change |
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Effective
stakeholder engagement is essential for
implementing operational and behavioral
changes within an organization as well
as with external clients, partners,
potential funders, regulators, and the
community. Organizational change is
inevitable when addressing the complex
challenges of incorporating
sustainability and mitigating climate—
requiring new business processes,
projects and initiatives. A prerequisite
to successful change is a behavioral
shift in the way the people think and
act within an organization. Having an
informed and intentional change process
increases the likelihood of success from
35% to 70%. This workshop teaches
decision makers to identify and address
the most important barriers to change as
well as take advantage of best practices
of stakeholder engagement and
organizational change management.
Bootcamp topics include creating a
foundation for engaging stakeholders,
the basics of the organizational change
process, critical success factors and
levers, lessons learned, and overcoming
specific challenges participants face. |
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Governance-102 |
Understanding the
Legal/Policy Landscape & Determining the
Best Strategy for Your Organization |
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Organizational climate strategy
encompasses a broad range of activities,
potentially including policy activism;
carbon footprint reduction; internal and
external communication; supply chains;
industrial processes and product
lifecycles. In some cases, climate
strategy expands into the realm of
organizational mission and values; it
affects, or can be affected by,
leadership, ownership and/or stakeholder
goals. How does an organization approach
climate change in a way that is optimal
for business, customers, suppliers,
mission success and even society as a
whole? What is the goal of establishing
a climate strategy? Where should
boundaries be drawn? This bootcamp will
help you think through these issues and
achieve a better understanding of the
right path for your organization. |
Electives
In addition to the above core curriculum
requirements, certificate enrollees are required to take a
minimum of 14 hours of electives meeting the following
guidelines:
- At least 3.5 hours of coursework
oriented toward a particular sector
- At least 3.5 hours of coursework
oriented toward your professional role or function
- At least 3.5 hours of coursework
focused upon a geographic region or location type
Sample sector-specific CCO Training
Bootcamp:
|
Catalog ID |
CCO Training Bootcamp |
|
Climate-502 |
Climate Change and National Security:
Geopolitics, Natural Resource Impacts &
Extreme Events |
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Climate
change poses significant implications
for U.S. and international security
interests. The 2014 Quadrennial Report
states that "as greenhouse gas emissions
increase, sea levels are rising, average
global temperatures are increasing, and
severe weather patterns are
accelerating, these changes, coupled
with other global dynamics ... climate
change may exacerbate water scarcity and
lead to sharp increases in food costs."
These impacts will place significant
burdens on economies worldwide and will
act as a threat multiplier upon a wide
range of stressors. This bootcamp will
provide an introductory perspective on
geopolitical implications, including
honing in on some sample hot spots,
examine implications for access to
natural resources, and the impact of
extreme events on societies and the
defense sector. |
Sample professional role-specific CCO
Training Bootcamps:
|
Catalog ID |
CCO Training Bootcamp |
|
SupplyChain-101 |
Introduction to Assessing Climate
Related Risks in the Supply Chain |
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For Supply
Chain Professionals: Bootcamp
attendees will be shown the process of
identifying, prioritizing and addressing
climate-related risks throughout the
tiers of a supply chain. Instructors
will provide widely accepted
definitions, highlight concepts and
identify relevant online tools as well.
A unique feature of this bootcamp is
that it will translate supply chain risk
from a sustainability/climate change
practitioner's perspective into a set of
talking points and terminology that is
relevant and compelling to supply chain,
finance and procurement professionals.
Upon completing this bootcamp,
participants will not only have an
overall management concept of
climate-change related supply chain
risk, but they will also be better
prepared to successfully engage the
organizational stakeholders necessary to
address those risks and opportunities. |
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Energy-201 |
Developing and Enhancing Your Renewable
Energy Strategy |
|
For Energy
Managers: This workshop will
help attendees assess, scope and define
renewable energy opportunities and
strategies for their organizations. Key
issues to be covered include: long-term
procurement options; building internal
networks; assessing economic hedging and
risk; contract structures; working with
developers/consultants, and more. The
instructors will draw from their
considerable implementation experience
to share real-world best practices and
tactics. |
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GHG-201 |
Establishing GHG Reduction Goals & GHG
Management Structures |
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For Climate,
Sustainability, Corporate Responsibility
and Environmental Professionals:
This bootcamp session will guide
participants through the process steps
required to establish and implement a
GHG reduction goal. The instructors will
provide brief case studies highlighting
how their respective organizations
adapted process elements to meet their
business objectives. Key questions that
will be addressed include determining
objectives, establishing a baseline,
establishing a business as usual
forecast, setting GHG reduction targets,
selling to senior management and
implementing reduction goals. The
instructors will also provide direction
on applicable tools and references and
will lead discussion on how to overcome
some of the most challenging obstacles. |
Sample geographic-specific CCO
Training Bootcamp:
|
Catalog ID |
CCO Training Bootcamp |
|
Climate-103 |
Basics of Sea Level Rise & Impacts on
Coastal Assets & Infrastructure |
|
For Coastal
Communities: This session
will provide a basic overview of sea
level rise in the context of climate
change, including the basics of temporal
and regional changes, the forcing
mechanisms for sea level rise in the
past and projections for the future. The
instructors will provide attendees with
a fundamental understanding of the
observing systems used to measure sea
level change, and how various government
agencies are planning for the impacts of
sea level rise. The presentation portion
will close with an overview of the
concept of risk management in the face
of sea level rise, looking at various
adaptation strategies, and discussing
the concept of how to build resilience.
The last portion of the session will be
an instructor-led round table discussion
with the participants on what steps they
might take to help mitigate impacts of
sea level rise in their communities. |
Practicum Project
The Practicum Project (similar to a
graduate thesis project) is a requirement that certificate
enrollees must satisfy by conducting a reasonably scoped
initiative that is directly applicable to their workplace
responsibilities. Upon successful completion of the mandatory
and elective course requirements, certificate applicants will
design and complete a work-related Practicum Project that
reflects understanding of the above-referenced coursework.
An independent review board managed by
ACCO will provide certificate enrollees with guidance aimed to
help shape their practicum before they begin to work upon the
project. All practicum projects will be reviewed within 60-90
days of submission.
Continuing Education
& Usage Requirements
Maintaining good standing requires
written documentation provided to ACCO by the certificate bearer
reflecting the following:
- Continuing Education –
Completion of a minimum of 8 hours of continuing education
courses annually
- Some of the certificate’s core
curriculum courses may also require a periodic refresh
(e.g. every 2-4 years). Satisfaction of continuing
education requirements for these courses can also be
used toward the annual 8-hour requirement.
- Usage – Contribution to the
community of climate practitioners through a minimum of 40
hours of service, which may include: speaking at public
events, conducting research, developing training programs
for internal/external stakeholders, and/or publication. ACCO
will publish specific guidelines for meeting these
requirements by Summer 2015.
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