23 Jun 2025
From May 17th to 18th, 2025, a valuable training opportunity "Enterprise ESG?Assessor 2025 Yangtze River Delta Phase II Suzhou Station" was provided by the China Certification and Accreditation Association (CCAA), with academic supports by the Central University of Finance and Economics Sustainable Development Criteria Research Center and the School of Science of XJTLU.
With the theme "Industry-Education Integration Empowers Sustainable Development," the training offered cutting-edge content that closely follows the global standards and best practices in sustainable development, ensuring that participants master the practical skills required by multinational corporations. The training was significantly integrated with the newly launched ESG pathway in the BSc Environmental Science Programme from the School of Science at XJTLU, forming a closed loop of "discipline construction - certification practice - talent output".
1.New positions for universities: Dual empowerment from teaching space to academic support
Approved by the Ministry of Education in China and the University of Liverpool, UK, the BSc Environmental Science Programme at the School of Science, XJTLU will add a new and exciting ESG (Environmental, Social Sustainability, and Governance) pathway in 2025, focusing on core areas such as: environmental economics, environmental policies, and climate change and risk. The courses have been carefully designed to address challenges and teach issues related to the international sustainable development frameworks. Based on this principle, the School of Science regarded this training as a crucial component of its scientific construction and development of ESG. The teachers and students participating in the training were provided with an opportunity to integrate the knowledge of the ESG core modules with that of "Sustainable Information Disclosure Practice" and "ESG Rating Methods" in the training, demonstrating the compatibility between academic education and certification training.
2.Linkage inside and outside the classroom: The dual-track training model shows initial promising results
?This training specially invited domestic ESG experts to give lectures, covering core modules such as international standards for sustainable information disclosure, rating systems, information disclosure, sustainable supply chain management, and investment and financing applications.
Through the dual-track guidance of "theory + practice", this training deepens the understanding of ESG concepts, stimulates awareness of ESG responsibility, lays a solid theoretical foundation, and promotes the construction of the ESG dual-carbon ecology, while enabling ESG trainees to quickly master the complete logical chain of “from framework to implementation.” This training was led by the Research Center for Sustainable Guidelines of Central University of Finance and Economics and the School of Science, XJTLU in conjunction with the Urban Development Research Institute of Suzhou Industrial Park, Suzhou Science and Technology Enterprise Equity Service Co., Ltd., and the Suzhou Industrial Park Enterprise Sustainable Development Ecosystem Promotion Association. It aimed to cultivate high quality ESG talents and create an ESG innovation source, accelerating the integration of ESG standards in the Yangtze River Delta with an aim at global sustainable governance.
3.New paradigm for talent cultivation: Building a closed-loop from "professional direction" to "career path"
Dr. Lei Han from the School of Science at XJTLU emphasized at the graduation ceremony that: "ESG talents are the core driving force for sustainable development." This training combined the ESG curriculum with CCAA certification, which provided a theoretical foundation for the certification and opened up employment channels through occupational training. Presently, there is a significant employment gap of 2.27 million talents in China's ESG and carbon management fields. This training was focused on cultivating talents with both academic?literacy and practical ability, further improving the evaluation system, and deepening the ESG ecological construction in the Yangtze River Delta.
Conclusion: The resonance between universities and industries constructs a new ESG education ecosystem
The implementation of the joint CCAA training from the School of Science, XJTLU and the Research Center for Sustainable Guidelines, Central University of Finance and Economics marks a new stage in China's ESG education. ESG is no longer the purview of a "characteristic exploration" of a few universities but has become an integrated and "necessary configuration" to address global sustainable development challenges. This in-depth integration of universities and industries allows academic research to take root in the industrial soil and for professional certifications to receive theoretical nourishment. With more opportunities for universities and industry to join forces, ESG education will become the core engine of sustainable development. It is a means and an avenue to cultivate professional talents and become a critical tool to promote and support China to play a greater role in global ESG governance.
Applications for Programme student transfer into our BSc Environmental Sciences is open now, For more information about the ESG pathway, please contact Dr. Han Lei: lei.han@gdsqbz.com
Content：Dr Lei Han
Review：Professor John Moraros
23 Jun 2025