CCSI Trainings

As an academic institution, CCSI takes seriously our commitment to teaching and capacity building. Additionally, our engagement with training participants informs our research, advisory, and other work. In parallel, we regularly integrate our other work into our training programs. 

We conduct regular training programs as well as tailored trainings that respond to specific identified needs of government, civil society, lawyers, communities, private sector, and other stakeholders. In doing this, we frequently collaborate with key partners, ranging from local civil society organizations to UN agencies.

Our trainings are taught by CCSI staff as well as other leading academics and practitioners. We often draw on expertise from across the university, particularly from within the Climate School.

Executive Training Programs

CCSI regularly conducts three rigorous two-week training programs. Each convenes participants from diverse regions and relevant roles, encouraging rich dialogue among participants as well as between participants and instructors.

  • Executive Training on Extractive Industries and Sustainable Development - Designed for mid-level public sector officials and civil society representatives from resource-rich developing countries whose responsibilities relate to the development or management of the extractive industries sector, this course equips participants with skills to promote the responsible development of the extractive industries sector in resource-rich developing countries. 
  • Executive Training on Investment Treaties and Arbitration for Government Officials - Designed for public sector officials whose responsibilities relate to investment treaty negotiation or investor-state arbitration, this course covers new developments in investment treaty content and investor-state arbitration law and practice, and helps participants understand what those developments mean for them in their respective roles. 
  • Executive Training on Sustainable Investments in Agriculture - Designed for mid-level public sector officials and civil society representatives from low- and middle-income countries whose responsibilities relate to investments, agriculture, land, or rural development, this course equips participants to address the challenges and opportunities of international agricultural investments.

Massive Open Online Courses & eLearning

In collaboration with the Natural Resource Governance Institute and SDG Academy, CCSI has produced a number of MOOCs that remain available for enrollment:

  • Mining and Materials for Sustainable Development Transformations. Supported by the African Legal Support Facility, Anglo American, and Ford Foundation, and hosted by SDG Academy, this self-paced MOOC includes lectures from 27 global experts. It presents the challenges and opportunities for mining and materials value chains in the energy and digital transitions needed to achieve climate goals and other sustainable development goals (SDGs).
  • Natural Resources for Sustainable Development. Supported by the World Bank, this 12-week MOOC covers how to manage sustainable extractive industry investments. Cutting across economics, law, politics, engineering, and environmental management, the course covers oil, gas, coal, minerals, and the impact of the extractives sector on the countries dependent on it, on the communities involved in mining and transportation, on the environment, and on the prosperity of people in these countries. The course was also adapted by the Inter-American Development Bank for a Latin American audience, and it has been integrated into blended learning offerings at universities around the world.
  • Getting a Good Deal: Negotiating Extractive Industry Contracts. Supported by GIZ and the European Union and produced in collaboration with the CONNEX Support Unit, this self-paced course examines the challenges governments face in negotiating strong contracts for mining, oil, or gas projects, and strategies that governments can use to address asymmetric information, power imbalances, and other challenges common in the negotiation of such agreements.
  • The Sustainable ​Development Goals, Foreign Investment, and ​the Role of Trade and Investment Treaties:​ An Introductory eLearning Module.​ Adopted unanimously in 2015, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), or Global Goals, give practical content to the concept of sustainable development intended to guide countries in addressing issues like poverty, hunger, healthcare, and gender equality, to name a few. The Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment in collaboration with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office brings together a four-part e-learning module to provide an introduction to sustainable development and how trade and investment can impact the SDGs.
  • Creating an Enabling Environment for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems (eLearning). CCSI partnered with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to develop an e-learning course, ‘Creating an enabling environment for responsible investment in agriculture and food systems,’ to provide an overview of the Committee on World Food Security’s Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems (CFS-RAI), highlight the features and key players of an enabling environment that promotes responsible investment in agriculture and food security, and unravel the important role that this investment plays in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

Bespoke Trainings by Thematic Area