Last Week to Apply for "Not to Miss" Opportunity: The Natural Step Canada’s MBA Sustainability Leadership Bootcamp in Toronto

“The question of reaching sustainability is not about if we will have enough energy, food, or other resources... The question is: Will there be enough leaders in time?”

– Dr. Karl-Henrik Robèrt, Founder, The Natural Step

Are you ready to join an incredible group of students and recent graduates in creating and implementing sustainability solutions? If so, join us in Toronto, ON, from August 27-31, 2012, at the Evergreen Brick Works to explore this complex issue, create innovative solutions, and develop sustainability leadership skills.

Purpose

To train, empower, and network a group of 30 MBA students and recent graduates in accelerating Ontario’s shift to sustainability and prosperity through a five-day intensive Bootcamp experience.

Summary

Take your MBA skills to the next level by applying your strategy, project management, sales, marketing, negotiation, and facilitation learning to the sustainability field through a week of applied exercises, simulations, and live case studies. Be inspired by a faculty of national sustainability leaders and authors. Hone your skills through practical real-life cases and presentations of your findings to corporations seeking solutions to complex sustainability challenges.

You will be whipped into sustainability shape through an intense five-day Bootcamp, and will continue with coaching and team touch-points over the following four months. After the Bootcamp, you will have access to coaching from our expert advisory team who work with clients such as Nike, Pratt & Whitney Canada, and Research in Motion (RIM).

Learning Outcomes

The MBA Sustainability Leadership Bootcamp is about more than gaining theoretical knowledge—it’s about developing the skills, attitudes, and knowledge required to be effective sustainability change agents. At the end of the Bootcamp, you will have:

• Developed your sustainability leadership potential
• Practised facilitating meaningful conversations about sustainability
• Understood how to lead internal sustainability processes
• Applied a tested methodology for sustainability: The Natural Step Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development
• Practised capturing the business value of sustainability through live case studies
• Built a robust toolkit of facilitation techniques to engage stakeholders, colleagues, and leaders
• Built a strong sustainability-focused network in Ontario of peers, mentors, academics, and corporate sustainability change agents

Draft Agenda and Program

The program includes the following components:

• Completion of The Natural Step Canada’s Sustainability 101 eLearning course;
• A dynamic and interactive five-day in-person bootcamp style workshop (August 27-31, 2012);
• Follow-up coaching calls (8 sessions) for participants as they apply workshop learning to their studies or jobs;
• Membership in The Natural Step Canada’s Emerging Leaders Exchange, until September 1, 2013. The Exchange is a virtual forum and community of leaders to learn from and network with each other.

Who Should Apply?

• MBA students* or recent graduates who are interested in learning more about sustainability and becoming sustainability change agents.
• Those who want to develop their skills, gain practical experience communicating sustainability concepts, and become sustainability leaders to effect change in Ontario and throughout Canada.

*In some cases, students in related studies may be accepted if space allows.

When and Where?

This program will take place from August 27-31, 2012 at the Evergreen Brickworks in Toronto, ON.

Cost

The program includes breakfast and lunch each day of the Bootcamp session, as well as a networking evening.

The total cost to participants for this week-long session is $150, and bursaries are available based on need. Please indicate in your application if you would like to be considered for a bursary.

Note that travel and accommodation are not included.

How to Apply

Please fill out this application form, which includes three open-ended questions about your motivation for participating in the program (one-page maximum) and send your resume to the email address listed below.

1. Describe what experience(s) prompted you to be interested in sustainability.
2. Describe what attributes/goals/skills/attitudes make you the ideal candidate for the MBA Sustainability Leadership Bootcamp, with a focus on your leadership experience and how you have used your networks in the past to influence change.
3. What is one thing you would like us to remember about you?
4. Please send your resume to emergingleaders@naturalstep.ca.  Please include your first and last name in the subject line of your email as well as the title: 'Toronto MBA Bootcamp'

Application deadline is July 13, 2012.

To ensure an intimate and quality learning environment, registration will be limited to 30 participants.

APPLY TODAY!

Past Program Delivery Team

Pong Leung, Principal Sustainability Advisor

Pong is a founding member of The Natural Step Canada and has worked with a wide range of clients to share his expertise on sustainability, governance, and organizational learning, including a strategic positioning and organizational change program with ISL Engineering and Land Services, a comprehensive training and visioning program for the Landmark Group of Builders, and an award-winning broad-based community visioning and planning initiative with the City of Williams Lake, BC. Some past clients include Edmonton Airports, City of Calgary, City of Edmonton, and Morguard Investments, as well as many others.

Anouk Bertner, Manager, Emerging Leaders Program

Anouk works with students and recent graduates to help them gain the experience, learning, and mentorship required to transition from sustainability education to meaningful sustainability careers. Anouk works with university students across Canada to embed sustainability into organizations through co-op placements, youth conferences, and training young people to be sustainability ambassadors in their communities, schools, and workplaces.

Past Speakers

• Bob Willard, sustainability expert and author of The Sustainability Advantage, The Next Sustainability Wave, and The Sustainability Champion’s Guidebook
• Claude Ouimet, Senior VP and General Manager (Canada and Latin America) of InterfaceFLOR
• Mark Anielski, President and CEO of Anielski Management Inc (AMI), author of The Economics of Happiness: Building Genuine Wealth, and Adjunct Professor at the University of Alberta in the School of Business

Sponsors