This online course will introduce you to the fundamentals of Carbon Management and Carbon Accounting, and their role in the race for Scotland to achieve Net Zero emissions. It is aimed at individuals who would like to know more about Carbon Accounting, Carbon Management, and Net Zero career opportunities.

 

Course Overview

Climate Change has been described as humanity’s greatest threat with many governments aiming for mitigation through Net Zero emission targets between the years 2050-2070. In order to achieve this, we must reduce carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas usage at all levels of society to prevent exceeding an average global temperature rise of 1.5藲C above pre-industrial levels. We are living through unprecedented times with chaotic weather patterns, global food shortages, erratic energy pricing, with our way of life considered unsustainable.

In Scotland, we can see a strong movement towards the areas of social housing retrofit and corporate action in working towards Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) as organisations look to become more sustainable.

At every level within organisations, decisions, large and small, are made on a daily basis which impact carbon emissions. For this reason it is crucial that organisations take steps to equip their teams with an understanding of the primary drivers of climate change and the knowledge and skills to address these.

This course has been designed by Edinburgh Napier with expert input from Pattiesmuir Ltd and guest lectures to bring you the most contemporary understanding of Net Zero and Carbon Accounting training and knowledge. This course will be assessed formatively and applicants will be given resources and activities to work on post-session to make the most of what they have learned.

Course Details 

This course will introduce you to the fundamentals of Carbon Management and Carbon Accounting, and their role in the race for Scotland to achieve Net Zero emissions.

There are four live sessions on the following dates:

Session 1: Weather and Climate
(Wednesday, 5 March 2025, 6-8pm)

This session will introduce you to key issues of:

  • Weather, its patterns and when it becomes climate
  • What climate change is, what is meant by greenhouse gases and their everyday usage in both industry and by us in our everyday lives
  • The impact this is having on Scotland and the wider United Kingdom, and what we are doing about it.

Session 2: Net Zero and the Principles of Carbon Management
(Wednesday 12 March 2025, 6-8pm)

In this session, you will learn about:

  • The background of climate science, what ‘Net Zero’ means, the national and international agenda, and the costs of inaction
  • Why we need to account for and manage carbon
  • Sectoral versus cross-sectoral approaches
  • Emissions: scopes, boundaries, double counting and transboundary issues
  • Setting and achieving targets.

Session 3: The Principles of Carbon Accounting
(Wednesday, 19 March 2025, 6-8pm)

In this session, you will learn about:

  • Key standards and guidance including ESOS, SECR, SBTi, ESG and other initiatives
  • Publicly Available Specification (PAS) and International Organization for Standardization (ISO) protocols
  • Data materiality and sampling, intensity ratios, conversion factors, limitations
  • Performance and active reduction targets.

Session 4: Applying the Principles to Professional Practice and Opportunities in the Green Economy
(Wednesday, 26 March 2025, 6-8pm)

In this session, you will learn about:

  • How to manage carbon in your organisation
  • Behaviour change and questions to ask yourself and your colleagues
  • Employability and the Just Transition
  • What is a green job? – including types, overlooked positions, employers, skills, and self-employment.

How You'll Be Taught 

Teaching will be tutor-led in an online environment in 2 hour sessions over 4 weeks with a high focus on interaction, debate and case studies; utilising adult learning methods ensuring knowledge is built from a place of familiarity.

How You'll Be Assessed

No assessment

Cost

£395

Entry Requirements

The course is aimed at working professionals who are interested in how they can implement sustainability and the practices of carbon footprinting. There are no academic entry requirements, however learner’s should be comfortable with numerical measurement and/or using spreadsheets as Carbon Accounting is the process of quantifying an organisation’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Dates 

Wednesday evenings 6pm-8pm: 5th, 12th, 19th and 26th March online (Teams link).

Testimonials

“Very useful information. Lecturers very helpful, friendly and happy to answer questions.” – Marisa

“The knowledge and skills acquired are very useful and relevant to my career aspiration.” – Busayo

“The [course] gives me a much stronger basis to fill in the gaps towards a solid understanding of emissions accounting.” - John