Northern Vermont University will join with Castleton University and Vermont Technical College to become Vermont State University on July 1, 2023.
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Help make your community — and your career — more sustainable with Northern Vermont University-Johnson’s new sustainability certificate. The program provides hands-on opportunities for students and is a powerful workforce-education tool for businesses. This program, part of Northern Vermont University’s business department, focuses on a practical approach to sustainability in the workplace. You’ll gain the skills to help lead a company, nonprofit, or government agency in improving its environmental and social impacts.
Broaden your current degree, or expand your career opportunities.
The 21-credit program, designed to be completed in two years, is open to current NVU-Johnson and NVU-Lyndon students in any discipline and for working professionals who want to expand their career opportunities with new skills in demand by employers. There are no prerequisites. The program is aligned with Vermont’s growing green economy sector and the focus of more and more companies on the triple bottom line of financial, social, and environmental sustainability. If you’re a problem-solver who wants to make meaningful change, this certificate may be a great choice for you.
Get practical, hands-on experience.
Two courses, based on the NVU-Johnson campus — Introduction to Sustainability and Introduction to Sustainable Food and Agriculture Systems — and an annual summer intensive will alternate between NVU-Johnson and NVU-Lyndon will form the basis of your certificate. The first summer intensive will be in Johnson in 2019. The intensives will focus on such topics as waste management and composting, local and organic food production, green business, renewable energy, and multifunctional land management. NVU faculty and experts in related fields will teach courses.
Vermont is an ideal learning laboratory for sustainability. You’ll have valuable real-world opportunities that could include:
- Developing a business plan
- Helping at a farm
- Learning about green building practices and renewable energy
- Working with food supply networks
- Creating interpretive programs and self-guided trails in protected natural areas
Interdisciplinary courses related to health and wellness, ethics and politics, climate science, tourism, and other subjects will be offered. You’ll finish the program prepared to apply your skills in fields ranging from renewable energy and supply chain management to craft brewing and consumer products.
Gainful Employment Disclosure
Like all institutions of higher education in the United States that serves students eligible for federal loans and grant funding, Northern Vermont University is required to publish a gainful employment disclosure (GED) about certain certificate programs. You can find the GED for the certificate in sustainability program here.