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Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL)

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Applications for the 2021 part-time Master’s and Postgraduate Certificate are now open. 


Leaders today are making decisions in a world which is more volatile, complex and uncertain than ever before. Many organisations are recognising the need to better understand this changing context and equip themselves to lead positive change.

At the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, we focus on building the capacity to effectively tackle the world’s most critical social and environmental challenges. Our part-time graduate programmes are based on a blended approach of short residential workshops and virtual learning. 


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Part-time Postgraduate and Master’s courses in sustainable business


Mst in Sustainability Leadership

Master of Studies in Sustainability Leadership

Location

Develop leadership capacity to tackle critical sustainability challenges, with practical assignments and a research dissertation


Date

Full Master’s degree, part time over 2 years

Postgraduate Diploma in Sustainable Business

Postgraduate Diploma in Sustainable Business

LocationExplore emerging and cutting-edge responses to topical sustainability challenges and opportunities, with practical assignments.


Date

Equivalent to 2/3 of a Master’s, part time over 1.5 to 3 years

Postgraduate Certificates in Sustainable Business

Postgraduate Certificate in Sustainable Business – organisational/value chains  

LocationExplore embedding sustainability within organisations, or across value chains, with practical assignments and a group project.


DateEquivalent to 1/3 of a Master’s degree, part time over 9 months

 

Find out more

 

Unrivalled credibility


The Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) is a globally influential institute based at the University of Cambridge, with HRH The Prince of Wales as Royal Founding Patron. With more than 30 years’ experience of developing interdisciplinary leadership for a sustainable economy across multinationals, governments and individuals around the world, CISL’s delivery of these part-time courses provides unrivalled sustainability credibility.

 

Learn to lead transformational change


Study a part-time Master’s-level course to strengthen your leadership skills and embed sustainability in your organisation. These are some of our graduate students leading transformational change:

"I highly recommend the Master’s to any sustainability practitioners looking to be inspired, learn at the heart of where the action is and benefit personally as well as professionally from the experience - at a time when the sector is gaining increasing momentum."

Katerina Fragos, Manager of Sustainability and Climate Change at Procter & Gamble, Canada

 

"Within my cohort, we had participants from a range of sectors and countries. Having mainly worked in retail and fast-moving consumer companies, I relished sharing professional war stories with peers from automotives, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and finance, and from both in-house practitioner, consultancy, and civil service roles."

Helen McTaggart, Senior Sustainability Manager, Amazon

 

"Professionally, the courses definitely gave me the credibility and skills to communicate and be a leader on sustainability issues within my working environment. I also felt I had earned the right to talk about them. On a personal level, I became more reflective and considered in the way I approached issues."

Andrew Phillips MA FCA, Rural Director of Finance for the Duchy of Cornwall

 

"The course equipped me with the knowledge to move to the next level of my career. I had developed the expertise and confidence to use sustainability frameworks and models so fund managers could use that knowledge to ‘do well by doing good."

Elena Vydrine, Head of Portfolio Management and Environmental Social Governance (ESG) Integration at Ryedale

 

"The individual assignments set throughout the course gave me the opportunity to reflect on the topics that we had learnt and how these could be applied to real world examples. They answered questions that I had asked throughout my career."

Galina Parmenter, PG Diploma student, Project Manager, Global Sustainability, C&A

 

Read about our graduate students leading transformational change


Students from the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership advise Jesus College on improving the sustainability of its historic estate

6 May 2020

6 May 2020 – Students from the MSt Interdisciplinary Design for the Built Environment (IDBE) course run by the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) have been working with Jesus College Cambridge to consider how to manage its historic estate to achieve ambitious sustainability targets for the future.

Knowledge, motivation and mindset: How the IDBE Master’s opened doors and broadened my horizons

10 March 2020

11 March 2020 – Andrew Martin works in the Major Bridges International department of consultant COWI A/S in Denmark. He looks back upon the impact that his time studying for the Master of Studies (MSt) in Interdisciplinary Design for the Built Environment (IDBE) had in empowering him to develop an interest in sustainability in parallel with his established career in bridges and civil engineering.

Altering perceptions and unlocking abilities: Studying for the IDBE

29 January 2020

29 January 2020 – Dr Jenni Barrett discusses how she applied a social psychology perspective to built environment design collaboration following her Master of Studies (MSt) in Interdisciplinary Design for the Built Environment (IDBE) which led to an academic career and the foundation of coLAB, a consultancy specialising in training and research for the construction industry.

A driver for positive change

23 January 2020

24 February 2020 – Galina Parmenter, part of the Global Sustainability Team at fashion retailer C&A, reflects on how studying for CISL’s Postgraduate Diploma in Sustainable Business (PG Dip) helped advance her role as a sustainability professional.

Becoming an agent for positive change: Studying for the MSt in Sustainability Leadership

17 December 2019

18 December 2019 – Elena Vydrine, Head of Portfolio Management and Environmental Social Governance (ESG) Integration at Ryedale reflects on how studying for the Master of Studies (MSt) in Sustainability Leadership impacted her career in the finance sector.

Focusing on social sustainability and changing my life trajectory

9 December 2019

21 January 2020 – Mike Rogerson is a chartered accountant with a decade of experience working in finance and operational management across three continents. He shares his experience of studying the Postgraduate Certificate in Sustainable Value Chains, and how his time with CISL nurtured his interest in social sustainability and led him to pursue a PhD focusing on corporate accountability.

New perspectives and new career

2 December 2019

9 December 2019 – James McGregor, Chief Sustainability Innovator and Founder of the Blue Tribe Company, discusses his sustainability journey and the profound impact that CISL’s Postgraduate Certificate in Sustainable Business (PCSB) had on his career path.

Reflections on being inspired and learning at the heart of sustainability action

11 March 2019

3 October 2019 – Katerina Fragos, Manager of Sustainability and Climate Change at P&G Canada on the personal values and professional insights gained through studying CISL’s Master of Studies (MSt) in Sustainability Leadership.

Moving country and career to drive sustainable change

20 February 2019

20 February 2019 – Ana Holden-Peters, Sustainability Lead at Bakkafrost, reflects on the profound impact of studying CISL’s Postgraduate Certificate in Sustainable Business, which led her to focus on her own purpose as a sustainability leader and change her career path

How can we achieve high-impact leadership? The role of experiential learning.

25 January 2019

25 January 2019 – CISL Fellow Zoë Arden discusses the power of personal experiences in igniting commitment towards meaningful change, and shares key steps individuals can take to identify issues and lead action towards a strong sustainability agenda within their organisation.

About

Strengthen your leadership skills, further your career and learn how to implement change and embed sustainability in your organisation.
Study a part-time Postgraduate or Master’s course through online learning and residential workshops.

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CISL is monitoring the Covid-19 situation and responding accordingly to UK Government and WHO advice. At present, we expect to deliver our Graduate programmes in 2021 as advertised. We are well equipped to deliver workshops remotely should the situation demand.


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Minette Belingham

“CISL helped me recognise that within the sustainability space I can have an impact within my sphere of influence.”

Minette Bellingan, Director of Global Sourcing, Amazon

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