Certifications Terms and Conditions

 

Overview

 

The C.E.A CIRCULAR ECONOMY ALLIANCE LTD (hereinafter referred to as ‘CEA’, ‘Circular Economy Alliance’, the ‘Company’, ‘we’, ‘us’), in collaboration with the Circular Economy Research Center (hereinafter referred to as ‘CERC’) and École des Ponts Business School, offers various levels and bundles of certification relative to Circular Economy. The purpose is to unite core circular economy principles, skills, frameworks, tools, practices, and strategies under a single, universally recognized certification.

The following terms and conditions are to be read and enforced together with the Company’s Privacy Policy and General Terms and Conditions.

Definitions

Applicant/Candidate/Participant/Recipient/User: shall mean the person, firm, company, partnership, association, or government agency, or any other authority that will agree to CEA’s terms, so as for the latter to provide the services as described below and identified as such in the applicable Order Form, the General Terms and Conditions, the Terms and Conditions for Certification in Circular Economy and/or any other agreed written instructions and policies, to the former.

Body of Knowledge: The Circular Economy Body of Knowledge is a unique research-driven effort jointly led by the Circular Economy Research Center (CERC) of the École des Ponts Business School and the Circular Economy Alliance (CEA). The Pact for Skills, a flagship initiative of the European Commission launched on 10 November 2020, under the European Skills Agenda for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness, and resilience stresses the importance of joining forces and taking concrete action aimed at upskilling and reskilling the workforce. Responding to the call, CERC and CEA joined forces to provide the global workforce with credible, research- and practice-based skills training in the domain of Circular Economy. The existing gap between Circular Economy skill requirements and skills availability needs to be closed. In this respect, this novel and niche Body of Knowledge serves a purpose-driven agenda.

Course Bundles: shall refer to the courses included and/or required to validate to obtain a Certification.

Certificate or Certification or Certification Scheme: shall mean the certification related to the subject of Circular Economy and based on the Body of Knowledge.

Individual/Single Courses: shall refer to a specific course in the Body of Knowledge composed of several sections, learning “challenges” (brief knowledge check questions to help the learner assimilate the content) following each section, and final multiple choice randomized exam to validate the course. This can be referred to as a course or a module without distinction.

Order/Registration Form: shall mean CEA’s standard online registration form for Certification to be completed by an Applicant setting out the Services to be provided by CEA, together with any other information concerning the performance of the Services under these terms and conditions and the General Terms and Conditions. 

In these Terms and Conditions:

  • Unless the context otherwise requires, a reference to one gender shall include a reference to the other gender.
  • Unless the context otherwise requires, words in the singular shall include the plural and, in the plural, shall include the singular.

Introduction

These terms and conditions define conditions, rights, and duties, as well as the operating processes for obtaining a Certification in Circular Economy. It also contains information on Certificate maintenance or cancellation. The terms and conditions presented in this document govern the relationship between CEA and its Applicants and apply to all Applicants unless exceptions are specifically agreed upon between the parties. In any case, exceptions cannot in any way concern the conformity assessment procedures according to which CEA is required to operate. If CEA, or the Applicant, is unable to fulfil the obligations because of force majeure (forces beyond CEA’s control, including, without limitation, war declared or undeclared, natural disasters, fire, flood, strikes, pandemic, labour troubles, or other industrial disturbances, governmental restrictions or regulations, riots, insurrections, or other cause beyond the control of the CEA), an extension period for the fulfilment can be agreed upon between the Applicant and CEA (the ‘Parties’).

CEA has established policies, procedures, and fees that govern Certification decisions, the uses of Certification, and interactions with Applicants. These policies, procedures, and fees may be revised by CEA at any time without prior notification. These policies, procedures, and fees are freely available on CEA’s website. Any person who registers with CEA accepts and agrees to abide by these policies and procedures in all dealings with CEA.

Certification Application Process & Course Registration

Certificates are issued as follows:
Certificate of Completion (CoC), for individual courses of the Body of Knowledge.
Circular Economy Professional (Foundational)/(CEP), with recipients thereof, referred to as Circular Economy Professionals.
Circular Economy Manager (Advanced)/(CEM), with recipients thereof, referred to as Circular Economy Managers.
Circular Economy Specialist (High-Mastery)/(CES), with recipients thereof, referred to as Circular Economy Specialists.

How to Apply for Certification:

The following steps describe the application process:
1. Participants/Applicants can register for all CEA courses online by completing the online registration form. It is very important to mention here that if you as an Applicant, wish to skip the registration part, on the website, you are allowed to and you can still proceed with the purchase. Upon checkout, your account will automatically be created on the website.
2. Either while purchasing or registering for a course, an account (the Users’ Account, also known as the Members’ Profile) will automatically be created that will contain the Participant’s personal details including but not limited to name, surname, job title, and country.
3. While purchasing you will have the option to choose the desired Course or Certification bundle and make the appropriate payment. You will receive an e-mail confirming that we have received your payment details.
4. Upon validation of payment, a link from our Talent Learning Management platform (Talent LMS) will be sent to the email account used for registration. This gives the Applicant access to the learning dashboard with the content registered for.
5. Upon first connection to the Talent LMS, Applicants are kindly requested to complete their learning profile so that we can provide the best learning experience possible. The Talent LMS is accessible on both mobile and desktop to provide a convenient learning experience.
6. The Course, or Certification Bundle the Applicant has registered for will be immediately visible once the Applicant logs in and confirms their identity. In the event that there are prerequisites for certain Courses, only the initial courses will be fully accessible. Completing the prerequisite chapters unlocks the following courses.
7. Enjoy the Circular Economy upskilling journey!

Certification, Eligibility, Effort and Price

The following is a table summarizing Certification by number of Courses, expected learning effort, target audience / recommended background and experience, and the price of each certification.

 

Certification Chapters Expected effort Desired academic background Desired work
experience
Price
Certificate of Completion (CoC) 1 3 hours Open access None required

€95

(+VAT where applicable)

Circular Economy Professional (Foundational)/(CEP) 4 16 hours Open access

None required

 

€385

(+VAT where applicable)

Circular Economy Manager (Advanced)/(CEM) 8 30 hours Open access

None required

 

€745

(+VAT where applicable)

Circular Economy Specialist (High-Mastery)/(CES) 12 45 hours Open access

None required

 

€1,085

(+VAT where applicable)

 

All Certificates are delivered by École des Ponts Business School of Paris, France, and issued through a digital certificate platform. All certified members receive a unique private link to their blockchain-secured verifiable digital certificate that they can choose to share (or not). This ensures that third parties (recruiters, HR directors, and academic institutions) can verify the veracity of all CEA Certificates easily and efficiently.  

Validation & Assessment

Each Course requires successfully achieving a score of at least 70% on a randomized 10-multiple choice, timed exam (also referred to as the exam) relative only to the content of the Course and not requiring any previous knowledge. All Courses are self-contained in relation to validation and obtention of Certification. All courses of a Certificate must be successfully validated through the successful exam outcome, and they have to be taken in the predefined order in view of obtaining the Certification. 

There is no exam requirement when purchasing any of the individual courses for achieving a Certificate of Completion (CoC).

Time Allotted

Learning is online and self-paced. Each exam is available upon completion of the Course content, and you will have 15 minutes at the end to answer all questions. The exam results are automatically displayed on the screen and are also available on the Talent LMS Platform.

All Courses must be validated within the respective time frame of the initial registration based on each certification program and individual course:

• Circular Economy Professional (Foundational) – two (2) months
• Circular Economy Manager (Advanced) – four (4) months
• Circular Economy Specialist (High-Mastery) – six (6) months
• Individual course – two (2) weeks

Thereafter the content will no longer be accessible, and no Course exams or retakes will be possible. Upon successful completion of the course earlier than the allowed time frame, your access to the learning platform will be revoked and you will have fourteen (14) days to download any available materials.

EXAM RETAKE

The Course exam can be taken three times. In the event the Participant does not pass the first three attempts, there is an option to pay an additional €45 to take the exam again. The exam retake can only be requested up to two (2) times. This is a safety precaution to eliminate possible abuse of the multiple-choice exam format. The exam should be easily validated in one to three attempts for anyone applying themselves seriously to the Course content. If you wish to retake the exam, please contact Circular Economy Alliance Support at:

support@circulareconomyalliance.com  

Payment & Refunds

Payment must be completed before starting any course(s) and it is concluded at the registration phase. The amount to be paid is always displayed clearly for each product and the calculation of possible taxes such as VAT takes place visibly at the checkout. If you decide not to complete a course or certification that you have paid for, CEA may be able to refund your payment depending on your situation. This refund is subject to verification that you have not made any use or interacted with the digital material which consists of the course including but not limited to the Chapter book, the e-learning course, and the exam questions.

In accordance with EU guidelines relative to “buyer’s remorse”, if you pay for a Course or a Certification bundle, you can request a refund within 2 weeks (14 days) after your payment. Once you have already initiated the delivery of the digital content of the course, including but not limited to downloading the respective Chapter or initiating the digital delivery of the e-learning course, and/or earned your Certificate, you are no longer eligible for a refund, even if you earn your Certificate within the two-week refund period.

We do not offer partial refunds for Courses not completed. If you are not sure you will want to complete the entire bundle of a Certification, we recommend you pay by Course.

Membership

Following successful completion of a Certification, Certified Members/Certified Learners are automatically registered as verified members of the CEA certified members Directory. Membership is non-transferable. As a certified member, you can opt-in to receive regular updates, news, invitations to events, and access to new research and resources on the Circular Economy. You will receive exclusive invitations to community events, conferences, presentations, workshops, and networking opportunities.

As the field of circular economy evolves, so will the best practices, strategies, and skills necessary for adopting it successfully. CEA and CERC are committed to regularly updating the circular economy certificate curriculum and Body of Knowledge to integrate the latest developments. Certified members will be notified of new additions, so they can continue to maintain their circular economy expertise. In addition, Certified Members will receive ‘early bird’ and ‘loyalty’ discounts on all future educational and training products developed by CEA and CERC.

Important Note: Membership does not apply to learners who have obtained a Certificate of Completion.

Maintaining Active Certification

A large-scale transition to a circular economy depends on a highly skilled community actively collaborating towards a shared goal. By remaining an active member of the Circular Economy Alliance certified members directory, you will stay updated on the current developments within the circular economy. You will also have access to a directory of certified professionals sharing experiences and best practices for applying circular solutions to real-world problems. In addition, for those with a valid and active certification, there will be no requirement to retake any assessment or exam (unless as stated above your certification and therefore your membership will expire in case of more than one calendar year without renewal). Upon expiration, you will be required to redo the certificate in the future in case you wish to reinstate it.

The initial membership period is valid for the one calendar year following the Certification. It will not be automatically renewed; therefore, the respective notification of the renewal will be sent in advance to the contact details registered in your CEA account as a reminder. Maintaining your membership and renewing your Certificate’s validity requires an annual fee of €50. Only those with a valid and active certification can be members of the registered Circular Economy Alliance certified members directory.

The maintenance of the Certification applies to the Certified Circular Economy Professionals, Managers, and Specialists (CEP), (CEM), and (CES) respectively. This does not apply to certificates of completion for individual courses (CoC).

JOIN THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY ALLIANCE DIRECTORY

All certified learners are registered in the Circular Economy Alliance certified members Directory¹. provided that they will give their consent to act as such.

JOIN THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY ALLIANCE NETWORK

Joining the Circular Economy Alliance Network is open to any organization that is interested in sharing its own story, vision, knowledge, information, and narrative and connecting with other companies and organizations that embrace the same values and principles. By sharing your organization’s story with CEA, you are authorizing us to make this kind of information publicly available and your Organization’s Logo visible to our Knowledge Center. However, CEA reserves the right not to have this hosted/uploaded in case the information/story shared with us is not approved or needs editing and/or further clarification from your end.  Also, CEA has the option of rejecting your application if we determine, at the sole and exclusive discretion of CEA, that what you shared is unsuitable for any other reason including but not limited to due diligence failure. If your application is rejected, you may reapply at any time. If your application is accepted, but later deemed to be unsuitable, we may at any time, and without notice, have it removed from our Network.

Be part of a vibrant international community of Circular Economy stakeholders, researchers and organizations.

The Circular Economy Alliance works to unite businesses, NGOs, and government institutions around the transition from a linear to a circular economy. A certification on circular economy enables a common understanding of the prevailing circular economy topics and facilitates collaboration across industries, sectors, and borders to achieve sustainable, long-term change.

For additional information or technical support, please see the Contact Us page on our website. Finally, we strongly recommend carefully reading our Privacy Policy and the General Terms and Conditions.

Last Updated: on February 5, 2024