Sustainable Business Foundations

This course is structured around six key modules that build a comprehensive picture of the business landscape as it relates to sustainability, equipping professionals with the insights and strategies needed to drive impactful change in their organisation.

• Sustainability challenges: Systems pressures and trends. Explore the key global sustainability challenges, their underlying drivers and how business activity contributes to and is affected by these pressures.
• The impact on business: Risks, opportunities and the business case. Examine how sustainability influences business by analysing the financial case for the transition, materiality and integration of sustainability within organisations.
• The role of business in rethinking and rewiring economies. Harness CISL’s rewiring the economy framework to identify ways and actions to drive meaningful sustainability initiatives within your organisation.
• What ‘good’ looks like: Examples of best practice. Explore real-world case studies and proven frameworks showing sustainable business transformation to understand how to integrate sustainable practices into organisational decision making.
• Your personal action plan: Driving sustainability in your organisation. Develop a personal action plan to implement change and drive impact within your workplace.

By completing this course, you’ll gain a deep understanding of sustainability challenges and how to address them within your business. You’ll develop practical skills to integrate sustainability into strategy, create a lasting impact through leadership and leave with an action plan to drive change in your organisation. Through five key modules, you will:

• understand the impact of current global economic, social and environmental pressures on your business sector
• apply systems thinking to determine the ways in which systems shape societal outcomes
• appraise the value of integrating sustainability across your organisation, operations and supply chains
• evaluate how best to manage the risks and opportunities relating to your organisation’s impacts on, and dependencies on, society and the environment
• create a personal action plan to contribute to the necessary change in your organisation or sphere of influence.

This course is designed for professionals across all industries and organisations of any size who want to develop a strong foundation in global sustainability trends and the strategies needed to address them. It’s ideal for organisations aiming to build sustainability skills at both the individual and team levels, empowering them to innovate, collaborate and lead towards a sustainable future. Individuals seeking to start their sustainability journey, refresh their knowledge or enhance their ability to drive impact will also benefit from the course.

This course offers a flexible and engaging learning experience, allowing you to complete 6–8 hours of content at your own pace over a 12-month period. You’ll progress through a series of modules featuring a mix of videos, case studies, interactive graphics and self-assessments designed to make learning both practical and immersive. With a focus on multi-format content, the course ensures that each concept is reinforced in ways that suit different learning styles.

As you navigate the course, you’ll engage with real-world examples of sustainable business practices, helping you connect theory to practice. Regular quizzes and assessments provide ongoing opportunities to test your understanding, while supplementary reading and optional content deepen your knowledge.

At the end of the course, you’ll develop a personal action plan, equipping you with concrete steps to integrate sustainability strategies into your role within your organisation. Upon successful completion, you’ll receive a digital badge from CISL to mark your achievement.

Course licences are valid for 12 months, giving you and your team the flexibility to revisit the content as needed even after completing it. For organisations, the admin portal allows you to distribute licences easily and to track your team’s progress and gain aggregated feedback, supporting future learning strategies.

This course is certified by the UK CPD Certification Service and may be applicable for CPD points. Individuals are responsible for claiming or validating their hours.

This course is open to professionals across all industries and organisations, regardless of size or sector. No prior knowledge of sustainability is required – just a commitment to learning and a drive to create meaningful change. Whether you are beginning your sustainability journey or looking to stay updated on the latest sustainable business practices, this course provides the foundational knowledge needed to integrate sustainability into your work and drive impact within and beyond your organisation.

Materials and equipment

• Sufficient internet speed and stability for video streaming (2Mbps up/down).
• No specialist software or equipment needed.
• Please see our recommendations on web browsers (opens in a new tab).

Access to Virtual Learning Environment
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You can ask for support from your employer to fund this learning as part of your professional development.

Our Employer Funding guide has practical tips and templates to help you feel more confident asking for funding.

If your employer is funding your course or programme, we have several payment options available, including bank transfer (BACs), credit or debit card, and PayPal.

You can request a quote or an invoice for your organisation via our online course booking form, which will include a payment date and next steps for completing your payment.