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NOTE: Reviews of applications to the Graduate Certificate in Greenhouse Gas Management program have been suspended temporarily while the program is being updated to reflect changes being undertaken by the Biden Administration.

The Graduate Certificate in Greenhouse Gas Management is designed to prepare students professionally to contribute to a new low carbon world. The United Nations' Paris Agreement is now in effect and calls for significant short-term and drastic long-term reductions of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Such efforts require a new generation of highly-trained GHG managers. The George Washington University has partnered with the Greenhouse Gas Management Institute, the preeminent organization in the world for GHG management training, to create this customized graduate program, a one-of-a-kind certificate not available anywhere else.

Many countries are establishing market-based mechanisms and other policies to reduce emissions. There are now over thirty existing and developing carbon markets. In the United States, the Regional GHG Initiative (RGGI) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) represent two major efforts at regulated GHG reporting and management programs. The EPA's Clean Power Plan will regulate GHG emissions from the electric power generation sector and allows for regional cap-and-trade systems.

In response to the demand for mitigation, approximately 40,000 entities around the world quantify and report GHG emissions or removals. Many want to minimize emissions; others report to mandatory programs or want to be ready to make disclosures when those are required. Still others want to gain competitive advantage, improve their energy efficiency, or demonstrate that they take environmental issues seriously and be recognized for their efforts. A growing number of large corporations put an internal price on carbon when evaluating business opportunities.

This online graduate certificate program provides a powerful means to acquire up-to-date knowledge of the technical facets associated with managing GHG emissions using globally-applicable standards. Specifically, the program addresses the measurement, reporting, analysis, reduction, trading, and verification of GHG emissions. It is conducted as an online program available globally. The inaugural class begins January 2017.

The program is designed for aspiring and existing environmental and energy managers and other professionals in industrial, business, or government organizations. It will provide the policy and technical knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to understand and act on the GHG implications of energy management decisions to improve environmental performance and create new business opportunities. Graduates of the program will be able to measure, analyze, and report emissions related to energy use and to apply cost-effective energy management principles that reduce GHG emissions.

Students will learn the engineering, economic, legal, and logistical considerations for implementing GHG management in compliance with existing and planned GHG mitigation policy from internationally recognized leaders in this field.

Topics covered in the program include:

• GHG management in the context of the challenges posed by climate change
• Fundamental concepts of GHG accounting
• Methods for estimating GHG emissions, with emphasis on energy-related activities
• Project-level mitigation through energy efficiency and renewable energy
• Mitigation policies and programs, including carbon markets
• GHG management data systems and reporting
• Verifying emissions and emission reductions

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