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DECEMBER 2012                                                                     VOLUME 6 NO. 12               

In This Issue
Certifications and Standards: Confusion Reigns
ISSP Conference 2013 Preview
Lend Your Input To Certification Discussion
Help Develop Sustainability Accounting Standards With SASB
Job Posting: Two New Sustainability Director Positions
Fellowship Opportunity With Environmental Defense Fund
ISSP Board Member Pojasek Appointed Sustainability Lead for International Company
Book Review: Changing Busininess From the Inside Out
December Webinar: Changing Business from the Inside Out
January Workshop: Ecosystem Evaluations
Self-Paced Workshop: Sustainability 101
2013 Workshops: Preview of a Great Line-Up
Sustainability Conferences and Events
 
 

Want To Sponsor This Newsletter?

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Contact ISSP Marketing Manager Ray Berardinelli
 for details.



 

 
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Latest News About
ISSP Conference 2013   

Less Than One Month Left for Lowest Early Bird Pricing on Conference Registrations 
Registration will never be more affordable than right now for the ISSP Member Conference May 8-10, 2013 in Chicago. There are TWO early bird dates. To get the best price, register before December 31. We also have a limited number of specially priced rooms at the conference hotel. This year we are reserving a limited number of discounted slots for students and members from our category 1 countries. You will find registration and program information on the ISSP web site.  Register today! 
 
Sponsor and Exhibitor Opportunities
Position Your Organization Among the
Leaders of the Sustainability Profession
ISSP is pleased to offer companies, universities and NGOs the ability to broaden their presence among the sustainability community by offering sponsorships and exhibit opportunities in support of ISSP Conference 2013. Contact ISSP marketing manager Ray Berardinelli to learn how you can get involved.

 

Featured Article
 
ISSP E-JOURNAL ARTICLE:
Green Research Survey Respondents Offer Comments on Certifications and Standards

  

Early this year, the International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP) collaborated with New York City-based research, advisory and consulting firm Green Research on its 2012 survey of 1,548 sustainability consultants from around the world. The following article by Linda Lovett is the third in a series that ISSP is publishing to provide further insights from the survey data and other research and to address the questions:

  1. What is the market for sustainability consulting?

  2. What are the key competencies a sustainability consultant should have?

  3. What are the key associations and tools a sustainability consultant should know about?

Linda's fourth and final article in the series will focus on the various associations that consultants look to for leadership and training in the sustainability space.

 
This installment recaps the survey responses that relate to certifications and standards. It demonstrates the high level of confusion surrounding these increasingly hot topics, including the current lack of clearly defined distinctions between certificate programs, certifications, classes and training opportunities.  

 

These murky definitions underscore the need for ISSP and other relevant stakeholders to help clarify the situation, a task that ISSP and others will come together to take on in the months ahead.

 

For full text of the article, click here.

 

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ISSP CONFERENCE 2013 PREVIEW
Certification Among the Topics to Be Addressed At Meeting In Chicago

The International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP) is actively involved in seeking input from a broad spectrum of stakeholders to develop the critical body of knowledge necessary for a credible certification process.

Attendees of ISSP Conference 2013 will be able to contribute their ideas regarding certification discussions throughout the two-day event. An integrated reporting panel, reports from local chapters, and a panel of practitioners from around the globe is also in the works for the conference.  Don't miss out!  Register now for the conference and take advantage of early bird pricing.   

As part of it efforts to help clarify the certification process, ISSP also intends to convene a multi-stakeholder discussion on the topic in Chicago among key industry players efforts on Saturday, May 11, the day after ISSP Conference 2013.  

 

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Member Opportunities
LEND YOUR INPUT
Professional Certification for our Field

By Marsha Willard, ISSP Executive Director

Marsha_Willard
Marsha Willard
On Tuesday November 27, I joined a panel discussion to explore the possibility of creating a certification for sustainability professionals. The panel, moderated by ISSP management team member Ira Feldman, included ISSP board member Rich Goode of Ernst & Young, as well as, Jeff Soule and Felicia Braunstein of the American Planning Association, Ed Pinero of Veolia North America, Mitchell Thomashow of Second Nature, and Larry Falkin of the City of Cincinnati.

 

This is a big and controversial issue. While the webinar reached no definitive conclusions here are a couple of the key take-aways from the conversation:

 

* Certification would contribute to the profession by providing standardization and consistency and help employers and clients distinguish among all the people claiming to be a sustainability professional.

 

* There is concern, however, about codifying a profession that is dynamic and still rapidly evolving.

 

* There are already some certificate programs and certification schemes out there but few of them have followed a recognized process of creation and may therefore not carry the credibility necessary to be of use to professionals.

 

* ISSP's competency studies  provide a sound foundation from which to develop a credible body of knowledge for the field.

 

* If certification were pursued, there would need to be a broad stakeholder group that includes academia, industry, student/youth, NGOs.

* Ultimately, the final goal should be to assure that the field is served by the best prepared professionals.

To listen to the archived webinar recording, go to  http://securityandsustainabilityforum.org, then join for free and obtain access to the webinar.

To join the discussion on the topic, visit the ISSP Linkedin site. We hope to get everyone's voice in the room on this topic. 

 

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GET INVOLVED
Help Develop Sustainability Accounting Standards By Joining An SASB Working Group

 

ISSP is pleased to announce an exciting opportunity for members to contribute to the development of sustainability accounting standards as they are being developed - participation in Sustainability Accounting Standards Board's (SASB's) industry working groups (IWGs).

SASB
's next working group covers the 
financial sector, and begins in February. Participation takes place over the course of a month, via a digital platform, is free of charge, and is self-paced.


To apply to join as a SASB working group member, click here.

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NEW JOB POSTING
Two New Sustainability Director Positions

 

Check out these and other postings at the ISSP job posting web page:

 

ISSP Job Postings

 

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FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITY
Environmental Defense Fund

Save Energy with Environmental Defense Fund's Climate Corps Opportunity

 

Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) is offering ISSP members an exciting opportunity to save energy, cut costs and improve productivity in 2013 through its EDF Climate Corps program. There are still a few spots left, and EDF has offered to connect with ISSP members to discuss specifics and potential projects any time before the end of the year.  

 

You can access the application online here. You can also follow up with David Fox from EDF at [email protected] or (919) 881-2931.

 

EDF Climate Corps is a high-value summer fellowship program that places top tier graduate students in companies, nonprofits and public sector organizations to analyze energy-saving opportunities and develop custom energy management plans. On average, EDF fellows have found $1 million in energy savings for each organization involved.

 

Join the list of 200 satisfied EDF Climate Corps participants, including Facebook, Google, McDonald's, JPMorgan, City of Boston and the Smithsonian Institution. These organizations have tapped into EDF's expertise to make improvements in lighting and HVAC systems, advanced technologies, funding mechanisms and employee engagement. And now your organization can too.

 

In addition to financial benefits, organizations receive access to EDF's network of hundreds of top executives, support from EDF's energy experts, and help with strategic projects such as employee engagement, green leasing and goal setting. There are a limited number of spots available for summer 2013 and they will go quickly after the holidays, so sign up now.

 

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NEWS FROM THE ISSP BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Bob Pojasek Appointed Sustainability Lead for International Consulting Firm Exponent, Inc.

Bob Pojasek, a member of the ISSP Board of Directors, has recently started working at Exponent, Inc. as the Sustainability Lead. Exponent is a leading International engineering and scientific
Bob Pojasek
consulting firm providing solutions to complex situations. The firm has been best known for analyzing accidents and failures to determine their causes, but in recent years it has become more active in assisting clients with human health, environmental and engineering issues and risks associated with new products and supply chains and help problems in the future. 

Bob also teaches a popular distance learning sustainability course at Harvard University entitled Strategies for Sustainability Management. When offered again in January, this course is expected to draw over 200 participants from more than 30 countries. Additionally, Bob has been instrumental in developing the methods for the ISSP certification program.

 

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Members, Send Us Your News !!! 

Have you or your company done something interesting lately? Did you recently publish an article, win an award or make a presentation to a large group?  Let us know what you've been up to so we may share it with your fellow members here in our newsletter.NewsLogo
Send your news items to [email protected] 
with the phrase Newsletter Item in the subject line. 

See you on-line! 
   

BOOK REVIEW:
CHANGING BUSINESS FROM THE INSIDE OUT
A Treehugger's Guide to Working in Corporations

Mohin, Timothy J. 2012. Changing Business From the Inside Out: A Treehuggers Guide to Working in Corporations. Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc. San Francisco.  

 

Review prepared by Christy Nordstrom, ISSP Education Program Manager 

 

To the acclaim of many, Timothy Mohin delivers what he promises, a "manual on how to steer the corporate supertanker toward doing good for people and our planet." If you have achieved a corporate social responsibility title, or are strategizing to gain that sustainability position, and want to make a difference, Mohin will mentor you through the steps he honed working for Advanced Micro Devices, EORM, Apple and Intel.

 

First he helps those who remember the advent of superfund cleanup sites, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the discourse on corporate social responsibility, showing the links between them and the more ethical norms now. Forty years ago, if you pursued your dream and your values to advocate for social and environmental justice to protect the planet, then you might have been tagged only as a treehugger. Or if you pursued a living and worked within a corporation, there were few ad hoc sustainability initiatives to express your values. It seemed as if you were either in or out.  

 

To read the full book review, click here

 

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Upcoming Events
 
  DECEMBER 6th WEBINAR
Changing Business from  
the Inside Out:  
A Treehugger's Guide to  
Working in Corporations  
with Timothy Mohin  

 

Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at 11am PST / 2 PM EST

 

Timothy Mohin wrote the ultimate insider's guide, Changing Business from the Inside Out: A Treehugger's Guide to Working in Corporations.  
 
Changing Business from the Inside Out is the essential how-to handbook for anyone working in, or aspiring to work in, corp
Tim Mohin
Tim Mohin
orate responsibility. In his book, Mohin shares insights, inspiration,and invaluable lessons learned from his 20-year career on the front lines of this evolving field. Tim is currently the director of corporate responsibility for Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). Before AMD, he spent 10 years in government working on air-quality protections, then led sustainability efforts at Intel and Apple. 

 

Many sustainability books tell us why business should be more sustainable. Happily, Tim's book tells us how. Join him during this Webinar for some great tips and tricks. 
 

Free to ISSP Members. $10 for ISSP non-member site visitors.

 

 REGISTER NOW>>                        

 

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ISSP WORKSHOP: January 2013 
Ecosystems Evaluations 
with Jim Pittman

 

Meets on-line on Thursdays (January 3, 10, 17, 24) 2013 at 10am Pacific Time-USA for 60-90 minutes.  Time Zone Converter

Jim Pittman With ecological economist James Pittman, explore ecosystems from the perspective of ecological economics, system dynamics and natural capital investment. Discover how healthy ecosystems generate value and identify methods for qualitative and quantitative assessment of ecosystem dynamics.

Instructor: James Pittman

 

Our Price: $450
Member Price: $325*
*Early Bird Discount available to ALL and ends 12/27/12: $50 off

REGISTER NOW                              

 

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SELF-STUDY WORKSHOP:  SUSTAINABILITY 101
Instructor:
  Darcy Hitchcock, co-founder of ISSP and
co-founder of Axis Performance Advisors

   

on-line learningAre you well-versed on all the essential sustainability concepts? To be a credible sustainability professional, there are certain key concepts you should know. Use this self-study workshop to test your knowledge and fill in any gaps. The course has four modules (read more HERE).  

 

The prerecorded webinars are taught by ISSP co-founder and sustainability consultant/author, Darcy Hitchcock.  

 

Dates: Open Enrollment. Register at any time.  

Take up to 8 weeks to complete.  

 REGISTER NOW>>                        

 

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2013 WORKSHOPS
Here's your opportunity to complete your
ISSP Sustainability Professionals Certificate
in 7 months!

 5 CORE + 3 ELECTIVE + 4 WEBINARS 

JAN  Ecosystem Evaluations - James Pittman 

FEB  Stakeholder Engagement Strategies - Susanne Croft

MAR Sustainability Planning - Marsha Willard

APR Sustaining Sustainability - Dorothy Atwood

MAY Practical Tools and Methods - Alan AtKisson  

MAY Pre-Conference 1-day Leadership Skills - Bob Willard 

JUN Life-Cycle Assessment - Tom Gloria  

JUL  Biomimicry, Learning from Nature - Mary Hansel  

 

For more information on the ISSP Certificate program click HERE   

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SeptEventsSUSTAINABILITY CONFERENCES AND EVENTS

 

See details about these events on the Other Sustainability Events  page of the ISSP Website.        

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