Certificate in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Strategy

ESG as your career path

CESR has developed a Certificate in ESG Strategy to address the evolving needs of early- to mid-career ESG, Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practitioners. Our instructors refresh the course content each semester to remain current, and the classroom environment features industry expert guest speakers, collaborative and experiential learning exercises, and dialogue-based lessons.

We are proud to partner with B:CIVIC, a Colorado-based nonprofit association of professionals, business leaders and for-profit companies focused on ESG, CSR and civic philanthropy.

Is this class right for me?

The variety of students in the Certificate in ESG Strategy program is part of the value of the course. Whether you are building a CSR program in your company, working to strengthen ESG practices for your business, or work for a nonprofit looking to better understand corporate sustainability strategies, you’ll find a place in this class. Some of our past students include: senior leaders in ESG, CSR and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) departments, employee engagement professionals, mid-career pivoting into ESG roles, graduate students seeking to supplement their knowledge base, marketing and finance consultants who want to help their clients incorporate CSR, nonprofit professionals wanting a better understanding of their corporate partners, and more.

Contact cesr@colorado.edu for any questions you may have.

This program was formerly called the Certificate in Corporate Social Responsibility (CCSR). We have not made any changes to curriculum along with updating the program's name. In fact, the program's name change to ESG Strategy reflects current terminology and our instructors ongoing work to keep the curriculum leading-edge.

gold quote

The CCSR course I took with Pete Dignan was monumental in helping me find and excel at my current role leading employee engagement and fundraising with the Western Union Foundation. It has served as my north star in many ways and I always refer back to my notes and different classes we took to remind myself of why our work matters. The best part of our class was getting to network with different people from different industries every Wednesday and discuss CSR topics and implementation. I rate I Course 15/10 and wish I could take it again.

- Mazza FarajAllah, Western Union Foundation, Spring 2021 Cohort

Certificate in ESG Strategy Program Structure, Learning Environment and Core Topics

The Certificate in ESG Strategy is collaborative, interpersonal and experiential, with dialogue-based learning involving cohort members and subject matter experts. Through knowledgeable instructors and guest speakers, you’ll get practical, applicable best practices that can help you deliver maximum value back to your company, organization and the communities you serve.

Certificate – Upon completion of the program, students receive a non-credit, professional Certificate in ESG Strategy from the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Instructors – The course has two instructors. Tuesday and Thursday cohorts are led by Pete Dignan, a 3-time CEO of Certified B Corps, and features guest speakers with deep expertise and practical experience in ESG. The Wednesday cohort is led by Jennifer Forman, ESG Program Lead at Splunk, former Director of Corporate Citizenship at PopSockets and an aluma of the program. The curriculum was developed by seasoned CSR professional Geri Mitchell-Brown.

Format – The course will be collaborative and experiential, with dialogue-based learning involving the instructors, cohort members and ESG experts.

Tuition – Tuition is $2,500. Since this is a non-credit course, no financial aid is available from the University of Colorado. Scholarships are available to support access for diverse leaders. Scroll down for more information.

How to Apply – Please fill out the interest form by clicking "Apply" below to set up a telephone interview with the instructor. This interview will serve to answer your questions and determine whether or not the course is a good fit for your background and needs.

CESR CCSR students in class
Instructor Pete Dignan facilitating dialogue and discussion

Fall 2023 applications are now open.

We offer three online cohorts.

Schedule – All courses will comprise approximately 28 hours of interactive class time, and will require up to 4-5 hours of outside reading and preparation each week.

This class is not self-paced, but rather meets via Zoom video conference weekly throughout the semester with 2 weeks off during the session. All sessions are recorded.

Tuesday Cohort

Tuesdays, starting 8/29/2023 - 12/12/2023 at 6:00-8:15 p.m. (MST)

Wednesday Cohort

Wednesdays, starting 8/30/2023 - 12/13/2023 at 6:00-8:15 p.m. (MST)

Thursday Cohort

Thursdays, starting 8/31/2023 - 12/14/2023 at 5:00-7:15 p.m. (MST)

Students – To preserve an interactive class environment, each group is capped at 25 students.

Apply

View our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page

The program’s core topics include:

ESG alignment with business purpose and strategy
ESG strategy models and frameworks
Diversity, equity and inclusion
Human rights and sustainable supply chain
UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Global Compact
Community engagement, corporate philanthropy, and social impact
Employee engagement, volunteering, and donation matching
Environmental sustainability
Financial perspectives and creating a CSR budget
Reporting, including GRI, TCFD, SASB, and CDP
Certified B Corps, Public Benefit Corporations, and the B Impact Assessment
The role of marketing and storytelling in stakeholder relations
Regulation, governance and policy advocacy

Learn how this course supported a DEI professional's career development in this interview with Dr. Glyne Griffith.

Scholarships

Diversity in ESG Leadership Scholarships

We are committed to making ESG education accessible for professionals from diverse backgrounds. Several $1,000 scholarships are available each semester for diverse professionals interested in developing skills in ESG and CSR. Additionally, Urban Leadership Foundation of Colorado (ULFC) alumni can access $1,500 scholarships thanks to a generous matching gift from ULFC. The purpose of these scholarships is to increase diversity in the field of ESG, corporate social responsibility and sustainability, and to connect social impact work to the training in business, politics and community leadership provided by ULFC.

Details:

Scholarships are awarded on a rolling basis.
Recipient must submit a statement of need.
To receive the $1,500 scholarship, recipient must be an alum of the Urban Leadership Foundation of Colorado's ULF Connect program.

Applications are now closed for the Fall 2023 semester.

Thank you to our partners for making these scholarships possible.

New Belgium logo Rocket Social Impact logo Urban League Foundation of Colorado logo

B:CIVIC Scholarship

To advance the B:CIVIC mission of elevating business for good, B:CIVIC offers a Colorado based participant needs-based partial scholarship for participation in the Certification in ESG Strategy program. The purpose of the B:CIVIC scholarship is to increase the engagement of community leaders in the field of ESG and CSR by bringing direct experience to inform their social impact work. You do not have to be a B:CIVIC investor to qualify for this scholarship.

Requirements:

Recipient must demonstrate financial need.
Recipient must be Colorado based.
Recipient must have 4 years of work experience in a business setting.
Recipient shall be selected using the established procedures of the Leeds School of Business.
Nonprofit leaders are eligible to participate in the program, however, this scholarship is targeted toward individuals with a financial need who are working to advance this work in a current role.

Preference:

Preference given to individuals who have demonstrated interest in the areas of business ethics, social responsibility and/or sustainability in their career to date.
Preference given to individuals with experience working in community to advance social justice issues.

Scholarship application deadline: July 16, 2023 for the Fall 2023 Certification program or once class is full. Apply here.

Certificate in ESG Strategy Alumni Profiles

This program was formerly called the Certificate in Corporate Social Responsibility, or CCSR.

Savannah Benton

External Affairs Manager | Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA)

In learning about ethical investing, Savannah’s key takeaway was the business case for social impact: Ethical companies are stronger investments and tend to thrive. Now she works with donors to see what kind of social good they can create together.

“CSR programs make lasting change when the culture of a company shifts from valuing shareholders to valuing stakeholders.”

Micah Gurard-Levin

Senior Manager, Community Relations and Corporate Responsibility | Liberty Global

Micah took what he learned about social contracts, inclusivity and flat organizational structures to propel CSR throughout his organization, even launching a new committee to give employees a more influential voice in community investments, volunteering and engagement.

“I gained solid CSR knowledge that allowed me to combine my passions for social impact and venture capital into my dream job.”

Meredith Hintze

Director, Foundation Operations and Community Outreach | COPIC

Meredith took her Certificate in ESG Strategy final project, a presentation of the business case for CSR, and used it as a jumping off point to start thinking about next steps and how to make the work that is already happening at COPIC more visible. After presenting her work to the CEO, she was invited by him to present her work to company leadership and staff as a way to celebrate the work that employees are already doing, and what CSR means at COPIC.

“For years, COPIC has done a nice job of engaging both in the community and with our employees. My role is to help our company continue to put the mission first and to enhance both our storytelling and materiality around these efforts.”

Hannah Ishida

Change Management, Enterprise Risk Management | Charles Schwab

Hannah Ishida took the Certificate in ESG Strategy class while completing her MBA at the Leeds School of Business to complement the program's ethics-focused curriculum and because of her interest in how businesses can do well by doing good. At that time, she had just completed an internship in risk management at Charles Schwab. The course helped her to reflect and identify areas that CSR relates to her MBA and professional experience.

“This course showed me how Corporate Social Responsibility can be woven into every aspect of a company. From a comprehensive stakeholder analysis, to reporting, to change management and risk management. CSR contributes to a company’s valuation, ethical standards and increased transparency that in turn may attract employees, investors and provides a foundation to withstand uncertain and volatile environments. I learned that CSR is most successful when truly integrated as a business strategy and that is my hope for the future of business, and what motivates me in my career.”

Codey Fredenhagen

Assistant Vice President of Investment Technology | OppenheimerFunds

As a software engineering manager in financial services Codey builds software models that rank public companies on their ESG program ratings. He took CCSR to gain a better understanding of what makes a great corporate responsibility program. He believes that this is a watershed moment for financial services companies as they increasingly make commitments to only support companies with robust ESG reporting.

“I build software models that rank public companies on their ESG/CSR program ratings. CCSR helped me break down and better understand the differences between glossy marketing materials and impactful CSR programs. I now build investment models with a stronger understanding of what makes a difference.”

Cindy Santos

Senior Associate, Strategic Partnerships | The Aspen Institute

Cindy considers the business sector a vital partner in the work to strengthen communities. She took the CCSR class to develop a framework, and the theoretical knowledge and language, to engage the business sector in discussions around how investing in communities improves outcomes for children and families and adds value for them. Cindy believes that this moment in our history requires us to be brave and bold in creating the world that we want to live in.

“I appreciated learning about CSR as a business strategy and discussing how increasing diversity and building inclusive environments has the potential to spur innovation, increase equity, and build cohesion.”

Naomi Amaha-Gollnick

Vice President, Health Strategies | American Heart Association

Naomi’s experience in the Certificate in ESG Strategy has had an impact on her professionally and personally. She enjoyed opportunities to apply the subject matter in concrete ways and to develop relationships with classmates. As an individual, this class informed how she makes decisions when purchasing every-day items. Naomi believes the class has also influenced how she thinks about the pandemic and national discussion on race.

“This program shifted the way I approach my work, how I engage internal and external stakeholders, and how I advocate for systemic changes my organization and those I volunteer with can make, not only in our operations but how we do our work.”