Grow Your Passion for Communication

CSU’s Communications for Conservation Graduate Certificate Program

Environmental professionals face increasingly complex problems, including climate change, land and energy development, recreation pressure, biodiversity loss, natural disasters, and human health impacts. Tackling these issues requires a wide range of skill sets. Social science and communications knowledge is a noticeable gap for many conservation practitioners. As the various avenues for communication continue to evolve, environmental professionals require more tools and tactics to convey information and change constituents’ behaviors to better our planet. Considerations for equity, inclusion, and environmental justice are also essential skill sets so that all people can participate in stewarding our natural resources.

Colorado State University’s online graduate degree in Communications for Conservation is an accelerated learning platform that offers budding conservation communicators the tools, information, and skills to engage with diverse constituents through various media outlets. The program pairs the context and language of conservation with communications best practices. From interpretation to policy influence and social media strategy, students gain experience analyzing and mastering communications tactics applied to real-world problems. Interactive discussions with university faculty and peers foster a robust learning environment where students gain exposure to different professional backgrounds.

Many of our students are working in natural resources but seeking additional tools in social science and communications or looking to make a career shift toward conservation. This flexible asynchronous program allows individuals to balance work and education while gaining conservation communication skills. Our alumni have found positions in state and federal agencies, non-profit organizations, private firms, educational institutions, and some have started their own communication firms.

As Dean Smith, the Wildlife Liaison for the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, shared, current conservation efforts “require people that can communicate with their peers, and to ...public stakeholders and all the people that are involved in the broad set of responsibilities in managing our natural resources.”

Check out the program! Learn more about CSU’s Communications for Conservation Graduate Certificate at https://col.st.qMb4r or scan the QR code below.