Pathways to Sustainability: Circular Economy

Professional learners, able to make change in their organization towards circularizing value chains, including:

• Government (municipalities, supporting agencies, etc.)
• Large for-profit companies
• Small-to-Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
• Industry associations & non-profits
• Academics embarking in entrepreneurship

Entire Program:

$2,000 (Individual Course Fee: $1,000)

Financial Aid

Funding opportunities are available through The Materials and Manufacturing Research Institute (MMRI) to participate in the program. Limited seats are available. For more information on eligibility and the application process, please visit the MMRI Site.

For details on refunds and enrollment deadlines, please see Policy & Resources.

Delivery Mode:

Online

Structure:

The program consists of a total of 56 hours of synchronous classes and asynchronous readings, exercises, and assignments. Each course spans 4-weeks, with 7hrs of learner commitment per week, for a total duration of 28hrs per course (56hrs for both courses). Throughout the program, learners will (in parallel) learn the skills and tools through direct instruction, assigned readings and worked problems, while also applying it to a selected case study from their workplace. This document is intended to be a vehicle to apply the course content to the workplace case study, carried forward into downstream development and triage in collaboration with UBC’s MMRI, and other identified stakeholders.

Technology Requirements:

• Access to a computer with a modern operating system
• Installed browser (e.g., Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome) for accessing online resources
• Adobe PDF viewer
• Enough hard drive space to install Zoom
• High-speed internet connection for:
  • Course 1&2: Word and spreadsheet software of the learner’s choice to edit and submit assessments (e.g., Google Docs and Sheets, or Office 365)
  • Course 2: Connecting to online virtual machine with OpenLCA installed
  • Course 2: A Microsoft account to login to the virtual machines (users can create a new one, or use an existing personal account, or use an existing institutional account)
• Access to an email client
• Microphone, webcam, and headphones or speaker

Program Instructor and Developer

Dr. Niloofar Akbarian

Dr. Niloofar Akbarian is a Senior Research Associate in the Accelerating Circular Economy program of Materials and Manufacturing Research Institute (MMRI) and a Postdoctoral Teaching Fellow at The University of British Columbia. Her research expertise focuses on the intersection of Applied Operations Research (OR), Sustainable Supply Chain Management, and Business analytics. She has led MITACS Accelerate– and MMRI-IRAP Circular Economy Seed–funded industry projects in bio-industrial manufacturing, developing Decision-Support Systems (DSS) for sustainable decision-making under uncertainty. In 2025, she was appointed Lead Instructor for this micro-credential course, integrating hands-on SimaPro training with real-world industry case studies on circular economy topics, including sustainability quantification and scenario modeling under uncertainty. Dr. Akbarian holds professional certifications from the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment (ACLCA) and One Click LCA.

Past Contributors

Dr. Bryn Crawford

Mahsa Mohammadi

Dr. Babak Tosarkani

Mohsen Roytvand Ghiasvand

Upon successful completion of all program requirements, learners are awarded a UBC Okanagan Letter of Proficiency (a non-credit credential). Learners will also receive a verifiable digital badge (which has descriptive metadata about the learning achievement) for sharing through digital channels.