Sustainability Assessment for Cities SUST 7250

This course is jointly offered by: BCIT, SFU, and UNBC: This course has been designed for professionals and other learners interested in the rapidly expanding field of assessment, indicators, measuring and monitoring for sustainability. Throughout, we place a special emphasis on the learning needs of those working in local government in British Columbia, although many of the lessons apply equally to community groups, the nonprofit sector, and private corporations. This course will provide an overview of methods, tools and techniques for monitoring performance in local government and measuring sustainability. A key focus will be on designing systems for measurement that are integrated and aligned with policy goals and processes. Participants will learn how to select and prioritize indicators that are effective and appropriate to monitoring in different contexts. They will be exposed to a variety of case studies to demonstrate how organizations have integrated sustainability monitoring into their operations as well as learn how to scope, plan and implement an assessment program in their own organizations. They will also examine different strategies for mitigating the challenges of doing indicator work and methods for reporting out on results.