Archive for the ‘Sustainability’ Category

Gatlin International Course Spotlight: More Sustainability Options

Tuesday, April 17th, 2012

Earlier this month, we highlighted a few courses that focus on building sustainability for our course spotlight series.  In the spirit of Earth Day, which is coming up in less than a week, we are going to continue with the sustainability topic for our course spotlight today.  However, the courses we are highlighting today are not the typical sustainability courses most people might think of when they are researching eLearning classes in the field of environmental sustainability.  Below are a few distance-learning sustainability courses offered by Gatlin International that you won’t want to overlook.

Certified Indoor Environmentalist

When most people think of sustainability, they think of individuals, corporations, and other organizations making changes in their lifestyle or business operations to reduce their negative impact on the environment in the form of air pollution, water pollution, or waste of natural resources among other things.  Many people do not realize that the quality of our indoor environments can be just as important as what is going on in the great outdoors.  Gatlin International’s Certified Indoor Environmentalist training program will train students for a career in the indoor environmentalist field.  This eLearning course will help students learn the practical steps to follow in an indoor environmental assessment, how to take samples, and how to resolve common indoor air quality (IAQ) problems.  Students taking this course will learn about HVAC, building science, and the major contaminants, including their health effects.

Not only does Gatlin International’s Certified Environmentalist Training program teach students practical skills to assess indoor environments, it also prepares them for the CIE (Certified Indoor Environmentalist) and CIEC (Certified Indoor Environmental Consultant) certifications by the American Council for Accredited Certification (ACAC). 

All the pertinent topics covered on the certification exams, including a 100-question practice examination, are included in Gatlin International’s Certified Indoor Environmentalist training program to prepare students for either certification they may choose.

Conservation

Conservation is another area often overlooked when people are investigating training or careers in the sustainability arena.  By enrolling in Gatlin International’s Conservation distance learning course, students will study topics such as an introduction to ecology, a perspective of the problems of environment, forestry and deforestation, water and the soil, pollution, the greenhouse effect, the ozone layer, poisons and waste materials, management of vegetation and birds, fisheries management, and marine conservation.

Upon completion of this course, students will receive two qualifications: a Conservation Diploma and an NCFE Level 3 Conservation Award.  The Conservation Diploma is issued by Stonebridge Associated Colleges, and entitles students to use the letters “SAC Dip” after their name in professional interactions. The Level 3 Conservation Award is an independently accredited award at a level of learning equivalent to level 3 on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This award has been designed by Stonebridge Associated Colleges to meet specific learners’ or employers’ requirements. Accreditation by NCFE is a guarantee of quality. It means that this learning program has been scrutinized and approved by an independent panel of experienced educational professionals and is quality audited biannually by NCFE.

Education and eLearning Conferences: May 2012

Tuesday, April 10th, 2012

Last month, we shared two articles with our readers detailing several education and eLearning conferences being held around the world in April of 2012.  As we have stated before, professional conferences can be an interesting and powerful way to network with peers, learn about new advancements, and investigate current research studies in your chosen field of interest.  Today we would like to share a list of a few noteworthy education and eLearning conferences being presented around the globe in the upcoming month of May.

ATEE Spring University 2012

The ATEE (Association for Teacher Education in Europe) is presenting its Spring 2012 Conference in early May.  The title of this conference is 20 Years for Sustainable Development: Learning from Each Other.  The theme for this conference involves sharing the best practices in education for sustainable development (ESD). This conference will be hosted by the Lithuanian University of Educational Services in Vilnius, Lithuania from May 3rd through 5th.

EADL 2012: The Profit Side of Learning

The EADL (European Association for Distance Learning) is hosting a conference from May 9th through 11th at a hotel and conference center in The Neatherlands called De Leeuwenhorst.  This conference will focus on the economics of distance education including aspects such as course development, identification of new products, issues surrounding infrastructure, and much more.

WASET International Conference on eEducation and eLearning

WASET, the world academy of Science, Engineering, and Technology, is hosting it’s 32nd annual international conference on eEducation and eLearning at the Naarden Hotel in Amsterdam, The Netherlands from May 13th through the 15th.  According to the official website, this conference “to bring together academic scientists, leading engineers, industry researchers and scholar students to exchange and share their experiences and research results about all aspects of e-Education and e-Learning, and discuss the practical challenges encountered and the solutions adopted.”

Thinking Digital

According to the official website, the Thinking Digital conference “is a three-day event drawing together exceptional talent from the worlds of technology, media, science, industry and the arts. We attract speakers from around the world to come to Gateshead to share their wisdom and experiences to encourage us all to pursue our passions and dreams. Importantly our Thinkers leave each year with a greater sense of connection to their passions and insight into the world around us.”  The Thinking Digital conference will be held from May 29th through the 31st at The Sage Gateshead in North East England.

eLearning Africa 2012

eLearning Africa is hosting it’s 2012 International Conference on ICT (Information and Communications Technology) for Development, Education and Training: eLearning and Sustainability from May 23rd through May 25th in Cotonou, Benin.  The theme of eLearning Africa this year, eLearning and Sustainability, will focus on exploring “creative ways in which eLearning can support development and help to build a sustainable future.”  This conference is held in both English and French languages and features an interesting photo competition in which photography enthusiasts across the world are submitting photos depicting their view on ICT in Africa.

Sustainable Business News: Greenstart Providing Startup Assistance to Green Companies

Tuesday, October 4th, 2011

Greenstart is a San Francisco based group of entrepreneurs who run a brand new organization that provides assistance to startup companies. The founders of Greenstart have a great interest in global energy crisis and “want to help accelerate a new wave of entrepreneurship and innovation aimed at helping to solve this problem.” The startup companies Greenstart chooses to support must fall into the category of “cleantech”, meaning the startup must have the goal of either increasing the use of clean energy or decreasing the use of dirty energy.  Greenstart also looks for startup companies that can quickly produce revenue and generate capital.   If a startup company can meet this criterion, acceptance into the Greenstart program is possible.  One of Greenstart’s goals is to help more than 500 cleantech startup companies within the next ten years.

Greenstart refers to its three-month program as the Accelerator Program or “startup boot camp”.  Startups participating in this program receive a wide array of support.  First, seed capital in an amount ranging from $25,000 to $100,000 is provided for the startup company to invest in its business.  The Greenstart program also offers mentoring for startup companies to improve the company’s efficiency and effectiveness to help with company expansion and the raising of more investment capital. Mentors will also evaluate startup company’s business models and product prototypes.

Greenstart also provides its chosen startups with access to leading cleantech investors who may provide various types of capital to the startup company.  These investors may also act in a mentor capacity with the startup working in conjunction with Greenstart to help prepare the startup company for pitching its idea to other potential investors.  Lastly, participation in the Greenstart program also allows the startup company to make many new professional connections through networking opportunities with other entrepreneurs, field experts, founders, and peers.  Startups participating in the Accelerator Program will have access to legal counsel, interns, assistance with grant writing, and office space.

Startup companies accepted into Greenstart’s Accelerator Program retain control of their company.  Greenstart will take a stake in each company (ranging from 2 to 15 percent) but they will not ask for any special rights, controlling interests, or board seats with any of the companies they accept into their program.  Greenstart plans on hosting three Accelerator Programs per year.  Each program will last three months and there will be a month in between the programs. The next Accelerator Program with Greenstart will run from January 26 – April 11, 2012.  The application process for this program opened yesterday, October 3rd, on the Greenstart website, www.greenstart.com.

Those who have a passion for cleantech companies may also be interested in one of Gatlin International’s online Sustainability courses. Gatlin International offers several Green Business courses including Green Business and Sustainability Professional.  Upon completing this course, students will have a working knowledge of green business principles, practices, and opportunities.  This course will provide the foundation needed to be able to integrate environmental sustainability so that it adds value to a company’s bottom line.  You may view the entire list of Sustainability courses offered by Gatlin International by visiting the course catalog today.