ACUPCC Introduces New Training and Education Program for Signatories in 2010
by Barbara Koneval, Program Associate for Training & Education, Second Nature
Among the important resources provided by the ACUPCC are training and educational opportunities to assist signatory schools with meeting the goals of the commitment. With more than half of the signatory colleges and universities in the process of developing their climate action plans this year, we will continue to focus our training efforts on all topics related to climate action planning in 2010.
Your feedback from our training survey this past Fall and from the Implementation Liaison networking meetings in 2009 was integral in helping us develop a training program that meets your needs. Based on your feedback we’ll be focusing the training program on the process of climate action planning, communicating your climate action plan, stakeholder engagement, how to compare mitigation projects, and more.
The ACUPCC will be covering these topics with both in-person workshops and online webinars throughout the year.
Our webinar topics for 2010 will address the following topics:
- Welcome to the ACUPCC: A webinar to introduce new signatories to the commitment, reporting system, and resources available to fulfill the goals of the ACUPCC, offered twice in 2010
- Financing for Sustainability
- Carbon Credits and Renewable Energy Certificates
- Climate Action Planning Best Practices & Examples
- Climate Action Planning Wiki: Learn more about this interactive how-to guide for climate action planning
- Communicating your Climate Action Plan: Tools and Best Practices
- Voluntary Carbon Standard
- EPA Mandatory Reporting System
- Engaging Campus & Community Stakeholders
- Academics and the ACUPCC
- Behavior and Campus Cultural Change
- Renewable Energy
- Greenhouse Gas Inventory Verification
- Energy Performance Contracting
In addition, ACUPCC corporate sponsors will continue to share their knowledge and expertise on relevant topics related to the climate commitment. Our first webinar on February 23rd will be an opportunity for new signatories to learn more about the details of the commitment and resources available, and will help you familiarize yourself with the reporting system. We’ll be holding thisWelcome to the ACUPCC webinar twice a year.
We have a few spaces left for the Crafting Your Climate Action Planworkshop on March 3rd at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. This workshop is a great opportunity to learn from two institutions that have completed their climate action plans, the process they used, who needs to be involved and how to engage campus stakeholders in your planning process. During the workshop you will develop an action plan and framework for your institution’s climate action plan. For additional information and to apply, please visit the ACUPCC website.
This CAP workshop will be presented again in the summer and fall in other regions of the country. In addition, we are working with Clean Air-Cool Planet to develop a bootcamp workshop to go into more depth working with the solutions module of CA-CP’s Campus Carbon Calculator. This workshop will be offered two-three times throughout 2010. Stay tuned to the ACUPCC websitefor more information on both of these training opportunities.
The Training and Events page on the ACUPCC website is a useful source of information for all ACUPCC hosted trainings in addition to other climate and sustainability related opportunities. The ACUPCC webinar series has its own page with archived presentation on various topics relevant to the commitment.
Mark your calendars now for the 2010 ACUPCC Summit, which will begin with a reception and speaker the evening of October 12th and continue on October 13th with tracked sessions for presidents and implementation liaisons. The Summit will take place immediately following the AASHE conference in Denver.
We have also heard your concerns about budget cuts and travel restrictions, and we are planning our training opportunities to be as accessible as possible. For all future workshops, our intent is to present ACUPCC events in conjunction with other conferences that signatories will most likely be attending. Our webinar series will continue to be a free training opportunity. Your dues help to support these programs, and many thanks to our corporate sponsors for their continued support to help make these opportunities available.
As a network and learning community, we’d like to continue to hear from youand learn from each other. If you have any burning topic ideas, or would like to participate as a speaker for one of our webinars, please let me know. We’re always looking for great campus examples and opportunities to feature your college or university. One of the strengths of this commitment is the ability to share best practices and access the network to learn from each other’s lessons and successes.
I look forward to working with and learning from you this year. Thank you for your continued leadership and efforts to lead higher education towards climate neutrality.
Barbara Koneval is the ACUPCC Program Associate for Training & Education and can be reached at 1-617-722-0036, or by email at bkoneval@secondnature.org.