Pictured (from left to right): Katharina Bauch, Jeff Vickers, Gaya Gamage, Emily Townsend, and Barbara Nebel
Our Head of Life Cycle Strategies Emily Townsend and Senior Sustainability Specialist Gaya Gamage are the latest members of the team to become Life Cycle Assessment Certified Practitioners (LCACP).
To become a Certified LCA practitioner, candidates are required to take an extensive exam run by the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment (ACLCA). LCACP certification allows the LCA practitioner to demonstrate a level of expertise in LCA practice and a commitment to the ACLCA Code of Ethics.
'The exam was rigorous! It covered everything from the ISO standards to project management to ethics', says Emily, an experienced LCA practitioner and the current president of Life Cycle Association of New Zealand (LCANZ).
The certification is recognised by the LCANZ and the Australian Life Cycle Assessment Society (ALCAS).
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Why get certified?
The 3.5 hour exam covers a large range of topics and tests candidates on their knowledge and experience with LCA and a whole life cycle approach. 'LCACP is important because it recognises that we have achieved a level of competence with LCA and are committed to comply with a professional code of conduct,' says Gaya.
thinkstep-anz now has five LCA Certified Professionals, including Barbara Nebel (CEO), Jeff Vickers (Technical Director) and Katharina Bauch (Team Lead). Barbara and Jeff have both recently renewed their LCACP certification. 'It is important for us to not only gain this certification but also continue to maintain it with recertification. We want to demonstrate to our clients that we are passionate about enabling them to succeed by holding ourselves up to the highest standards,' says Barbara.
What is Life Cycle Assessment?
Life Cycle Assessment quantifies the environmental impact of a product to enable more sustainable decision-making. Based on a wide range of indicators including climate change (carbon footprint) and resource and water use, an LCA study gives credible data to improve the environmental performance of your products. It can also lead to an Environmental Product Declaration or EPD, a popular third-party verified sustainability tool for communicating the environmental performance of products.
While LCACP certification is not required to perform an LCA, it proves that the candidate meets the highest professional standards and is recognised by ACLCA, ALCAS and LCANZ as an expert.
6 October 2020