Climate Literacy for Construction

What role do you and the construction industry play in climate change? This course introduces the science of climate change, specifically its effects on the natural and built environments. Key concepts like carbon emissions, energy efficiency for new and existing structures, and lifecycle carbon will be explored. Students will examine considerations for all phases of construction – from purchasing to installation – to help reduce climate impacts. The intended audience are those currently working in the construction industry although there is no required prior learning or work experience to attend this course. Participants in the Climate Literacy for Construction microcredential will be expected to complete two modules to obtain competencies related to the evaluation, mitigation, and adaptation of climate change in the construction trades.

The student will learn how to:

• Outline how our climate will change in the coming decades
• Identify how climate change affects people at home and at work
• Explain how the construction industry contributes to climate change based on National guidelines for whole-building life cycle assessment
• Explain how the construction industry is adapting to climate change based on national model codes and high-performance building standards

Assessments include a practical demonstration of the competencies outlined in each module and are aligned with NSCC’s curriculum development and assessment processes, including validation by industry.

For examples, learners will be asked to:  

• Inspect a simple residential or commercial building plan and identify locations where that building is likely to experience energy loss
• Estimate the amount of embodied carbon in building materials based on their type and volume
• Use principles of climate adaptation to plan several elements of a construction project
• Explain how the Nova Scotia climate is going to change over the next 50 years and describe the implications for climate change mitigation and adaptation

The buildings, infrastructure, and transportation represent the largest sources of carbon emissions in the Canadian economy. At the same time, these systems are increasingly impacted by extreme climate events. Climate Literacy for Construction provides a climate science foundation to support the trades workforce with knowledge to inform decisions in the day-to-day application of their skills that are relevant in view of long-term climate trends. Over a million Canadians work in construction trades. Transitioning Canada’s economy begins with creating awareness among the workforce that are literally building Canada’s low carbon economy.