What is the Forest Carbon Management (FCM) Micro-Certificate?
The Faculty of Forestry’s Forest Carbon Management (FCM) Micro-Certificate is a flexible 8-week online program that provides natural resource managers with an understanding of forest carbon accounting, related data sources and analysis, and the architecture of forest carbon projects and associated markets.
Why choose the FCM Micro-Certificate?
Including both compliance and voluntary markets, domestic and international forest carbon projects are becoming increasingly commonplace. This has resulted in a surge in demand for working professionals, within natural resource sectors, who understand and know how to assess and monitor forest carbon, establish and administer carbon projects, and navigate the evolving landscape of relevant markets.
FCM offers a comprehensive, science-based, and practical foundation for professionals, including those currently working and those seeking to gain additional skills to diversify employment opportunities and roles. This program offers a unique perspective based on an ongoing collaboration between University researchers and practitioners from government, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and industry.
What will you learn?
This 8-week flexible online program is rooted in real-world applications, focusing on domestic and international forest carbon project case studies, and making strong cross-sectoral linkages.
By the end of the program, students will have a thorough understanding of:
- the role that forests play in greenhouse gas inventories and the carbon cycle and how this is accounted for at different spatial and temporal scales
- where data related to forest carbon comes from and how it can be used to quantify, monitor and model carbon stocks and emissions
- the range of different forest carbon projects, how they compare, and which types are relevant to particular areas of interest
- the current state of both domestic and internationally applicable markets, changes on the horizon, and key resources to stay informed
Forest Professionals of B.C. Competencies
- Standard 2: Communications, Critical Reasoning and Leadership
- 2.1: Communicate effectively to describe forest carbon projects and how they apply to specific forested areas of interest.
- Standard 4: Trees and Stands
- 4.1: Explain the many attributes of individual trees which differentiate stands based on structure and composition.
- 4.2: Describe the typical processes associated with tree to stand-level dynamics (natural and anthropogenic).
- Standard 5: Forested Landscapes
- 5.1: Explain how composition and structure contribute to carbon dynamics at the landscape level.
- 5.2: Identify the different pools of carbon in a forest and how they can be quantified and modeled for entire landscapes.
- Standard 6: Information Acquisition and Analysis
- 6.1: Identify the different types of quantitative and qualitative data associated with forest carbon management.
- 6.2: Describe the different options and resources for analyzing data.
- Standard 7: Planning and Administration
- 7.1: Consider the multi-scale policy backdrop associated with forest carbon projects.
- 7.2: Describe the different types of financial mechanisms related to forest carbon projects.
- Standard 8A: Forest Management (FORM)
- 8A.1: Examine the intersection of ecological, social, and economic considerations relating to effective forest carbon management.
- Standard 8B: Natural Resources and Ecosystem Management (NREM)
- 8B.1: Identify the multi-faceted nature of forest carbon projects, which go beyond carbon to include communities and biodiversity.
- Standard 8C: Urban Forestry (URBF)
- 8C.1: Describe the role of forest carbon projects and initiatives within urban forest management.
- Standard 8D: Forest Operations (FOPR)
- 8D.1: Describe the role of improved forest management (IFM) within forest carbon projects.
- Standard 8E: Ecological Restoration and Management (ERAM)
- 8E.1: Describe the role of afforestation, reforestation, and revegetation (ARR) within forest carbon management.
Who should apply?
This program is applicable to a wide range of potential applicants who are working in or will go on to work in natural resource management positions in government, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, industry, and combinations thereof. This program is applicable to those working in BC, across Canada, and in an international context.
Applications are open to natural resource professionals and practitioners across all sectors who have demonstrated an interest in and a need to further their understanding of how to assess and monitor forest carbon, establish and administer carbon projects, and navigate the evolving landscape of relevant markets.
Employment Opportunities
- Natural Resources (e.g. forestry, mining, energy, parks and other land management, fisheries, aquatic and terrestrial management)
- Engineering (e.g. infrastructure, mining, energy)
- Urban planners
- Non-governmental organizations (e.g. conservation, heritage, cultural, preservation, and environmental groups)
- Industry – many different organizations across sectors are being required to report on climate-related financial accounting (TCFD reporting) and Environmental, Social, and Governance reporting (ESGs) across the globe, which includes carbon-related knowledge and practices
- Government departments – municipal, provincial/federal
