As sustainability becomes a defining factor in organizational success, these certifications provide professionals with a structured, globally recognized path to validate their expertise in integrating sustainability into business and project management. Unlike conventional approaches, GPM has removed reductionist thinking from its sustainability competencies, shifting toward a regenerative, living-systems-based model that goes beyond harm reduction to active restoration, resilience, and value creation.
This launch marks Phase 1 of GPM’s “Year of Do Big Things”—a bold initiative to reshape the future of sustainability and project management. With three major phases planned, this is just the beginning. We can’t wait to unveil what’s next.
Introducing the New GPM Certification Framework
The new framework expands beyond project management to meet the growing demand for sustainability and regenerative leadership across industries and disciplines.
- Certified Sustainability Professional™ (CSP™) – Recognizes expertise in sustainability leadership, strategy, and implementation, proving the ability to drive sustainability and regenerative outcomes at an organizational level.
- Certified Sustainability Fundamentals™ (CSF™) – Validates foundational knowledge in sustainability and regenerative principles, ensuring professionals can support sustainability initiatives in any sector.
- Certified Sustainable Project Manager Expert)™ (CSPMx™) – GPM’s highest-level project management certification, validating mastery in sustainable and regenerative project, program, and portfolio management.
- Certified Sustainable Project Manager Specialist)™ (CSPMs™) – Focused on integrating sustainability into project management, ensuring professionals can apply sustainability and regenerative principles across project lifecycles.
A Best-of-Breed Digital Experience for Certification Candidates
To enhance accessibility and streamline the certification process, GPM has launched four online certification programswhere candidates can:
✔ Download the GPM Competence Standard and evidence submission guidelines.
✔ Submit evidence and complexity ratings via a custom dashboard designed for seamless tracking.
✔ Monitor their progress in real time without relying on outdated email-based systems.
✔ Schedule their final assessment interview directly through the platform once all requirements are met.
By leveraging a fully digital, structured, and intuitive certification process, GPM ensures that candidates experience a best-in-class user journey—far surpassing traditional, outdated methods still used by other certification bodies.
Why This Matters: Moving Beyond Sustainability to Regeneration
This certification expansion comes at a critical time as organizations shift from risk mitigation to value creation. According to PMI’s "Maximizing Project Success" report, organizations are moving beyond traditional project metrics to focus on long-term value, stakeholder impact, and sustainability outcomes.
GPM’s Insights into Sustainable Project Management 2024 report further reinforces this shift:
✔ 73% of project professionals rank sustainability as a top priority.
✔ 68% of organizations struggle to align project management with sustainability goals.
However, simply reducing harm is no longer enough. GPM’s new certification framework ensures that projects and organizations regenerate natural and social systems rather than just sustaining them. This approach removes reductionist thinking and replaces it with a living-systems model, equipping professionals to drive true systemic change through their work.
“Sustainability must evolve beyond reducing harm to creating positive impact,” said Dr. Joel Carboni, GPM Founder. “At GPM, we believe the future requires restoring, regenerating, and thriving. With this expansion, we are ensuring that professionals at every level—whether in business leadership or project management—can validate their expertise in leading transformative sustainability initiatives.”
Built on Global Standards, Backed by ISO 17024 Principles
Unlike many sustainability certifications that focus only on theoretical knowledge, GPM’s certifications are competency-based, requiring candidates to demonstrate real-world application of sustainability and regenerative principles. The certification process is designed in alignment with ISO/IEC 17024, the international standard for personnel certification, ensuring a rigorous, credible, and fair evaluation of candidates' sustainability competence.
What This Means for Current GPM Certification Holders
To maintain alignment with GPM’s new global certification framework:
✔ GPM-S certification holders will automatically be upgraded to the CSPMs™ certification.
✔ GPM-m certification holders will automatically be upgraded to the CSPMx™ certification.
These individuals will be among the first to receive newly designed digital badges and updated certificates via Accredible.
A Call to Action: Be Part of the Future of Regenerative and Sustainable Leadership
GPM invites professionals across industries to join this global movement by pursuing a certification that not only validates competence but equips them to lead sustainability and regenerative transformation at every level.
This is just the beginning of The Year of Do Big Things—a multi-phase initiative to redefine sustainability leadership and project management. Stay tuned for more groundbreaking announcements as we Progress, Mature, and Innovate in the months ahead ;)
To learn more about the new certification framework and how to get certified, visit gpm.org—the home of sustainable project management.
About GPM
Green Project Management (GPM) is the global leader in sustainability-focused and regenerative competency development and certification. Since 2011, GPM has set the standard for integrating sustainability into project management and business leadership through its internationally recognized competence frameworks, certifications methods and tools.
