Release originally published by 3BL Media on March 18, 2021

AccountAbility is pleased to announce the launch of the AA1000 Online Training License, an advancement poised to improve the knowledge, skills, and capabilities of sustainability practitioners and enthusiasts everywhere.

Sustainability has become not just a responsible practice, but a competitive business advantage and central component of the corporate agenda. AccountAbility recognizes the critical need to up-skill professionals across all industries and geographies on ESG (environmental, social, governance) matters, and has developed a market-leading online training license to address this global demand for qualified sustainability practitioners.

Effective today, training organizations are invited to apply for a non-exclusive, non-transferable license to offer AA1000 online training content and curriculum.

To apply for a license, training organizations will complete an application form, available here, for AccountAbility’s review and consideration. If a trainer is determined to meet AccountAbility’s training standards and the requirements of the licensing agreement, they will be issued a non-exclusive, non-transferable online training license.  

The fundamentals of sustainability management are rooted in the AccountAbility Principles (AA1000AP, 2018) of Inclusivity, Materiality, Responsiveness, and Impact, and bolstered through the AA1000 Stakeholder Engagement Standard (AA1000SES, 2015) and AA1000 Assurance Standard (AA1000AS v3).

This license will allow trainers to teach the concepts of the AA1000 Series of Standards, so participants may improve and advance in their ability to apply the AA1000 in practical settings. Competency-based modules in this training program include:

• Module A: Stakeholder Engagement Practitioner Certificate, a certificate course and entry-point to the AA1000 training series which covers the AA1000AP (2018) and AA1000SES (2015).
• Module B: Corporate Responsibility Practitioner Certificate, a practitioner-level course on the application and reporting of each AccountAbility Principle. This course, when taken with Module A, awards participants the distinction of Corporate Responsibility Practitioner.
• Module C: Associate Certified Sustainability Assurance Practitioner Certificate, a practitioner-level course covering foundational sustainability assurance knowledge using the AA1000AS v3. This course, when completed with Modules A and B, earns the participant the Associate Certified Sustainability Assurance Practitioner (ACSAP) qualification and contributes toward a practitioner’s learning journey to achieve higher qualifications such as the Certified Sustainability Assurance Practitioner (CSAP) and Lead CSAP Practitioner (LCSAP) designation.

Providers’ development and delivery of these flexible, cost-effective, and on-demand AA1000 online training modules will occur independent of AccountAbility, with the AccountAbility Standards Team providing oversight to approve content and confirm training module compliance and quality.

To learn more and start the application process for the new AA1000 Online Training License, we encourage qualified providers to apply today, or contact us at standards@accountability.org.