In order to maintain good standing as a CC-P® Candidate, you are required to satisfy the following maintenance requirements on an annual basis until you are ready to complete the program and apply for the full CC-P® credential:

1.    Participate in 12 hours of continuing education
(cannot be redundant to exam content)

2.    Volunteer for 12 hours to support ACCO community initiatives

3.    Satisfy 16 hours of annual usage leveraging climate-related skills to conduct research, write/publish, support local climate initiatives and/or other areas that support climate action

4.    Maintain membership in ACCO

5.    Submit your annual maintenance paperwork and discounted membership fee

The annual cycle for maintenance requirements begins approximately 6 months from the date in which you first enrolled in the program.  Your formal notification of admission in the program will reference this time period.

Annual Maintenance Documentation & Membership Dues Processing:
  1. Prepare your Documentation: Fill out the CC-P® Continuing Education Form and CC-P® Continuing Usage Documentation per the guidelines on this page.
  2. Log in to your ACCO member account: http://members.accoonline.org
  3. Submit Your Paperwork: After logging in, select the "Annual CC-P® Candidate Submission Form" link under the CC-P® Exam Resources header in the navigation bar.
  4. Maintaining Active Membership & Dues: Enrolling in the CC-P Candidate program establishes an automatically recurring ACCO member account. Simply make sure that the payment method on your account is current and the $75 membership renewal fee will be processed automatically on an annual basis starting 6 months from the date of enrollment in the program.
  5. Our Review: After completing the document submission and processing your payment, ACCO will review your paperwork and send a review determination within 30 days of your submission.

Continuing Education

Completion of a minimum of 12 hours of continuing education courses annually (subject to the same guidelines as satisfying the CC-P® elective requirements, which can be referenced at https://climateofficers.org/electives).  ACCO reserves the right to insert additional continuing education requirements in instances where a change in science, policy or standards necessitates additional training.

ACCO Community Volunteering

Contribution to the ACCO community of practice through a minimum of 12 hours of service in the following categories:

  • Conducting research

  • Writing blogs, white papers or articles published by ACCO or on behalf of ACCO for publication by a third-party organization

  • Organizing networking events, peer clusters and learning programs

  • Participating in ACCO working groups

Continuing Usage

Contribution to the field of practice through a minimum of 16 hours of service in the following categories. All usage requirements must be satisfied through content related to ACCO's mission and/or the Core Competencies for Climate Change Officers and Professionals.

  • Speaking at public events

  • Conducting research

  • Developing and administering learning programs and events for internal/external stakeholders

  • Involvement in community or working groups

  • Publication of blogs, case studies, white papers and/or other reports

  • Participating in advocacy efforts

 

Maintaining Membership

CC-P® Candidates are required to maintain an active membership in ACCO for the duration of their participation in the CC-P® Candidate program. Membership fees recur on an annual basis starting six months from enrollment into the program.

                                   

Non-Payment of Membership Fees: If annual membership fees are not received within 60 days of the renewal date, the CC-P® Candidate will go into an “Inactive” status for up to 180 days.

  • While “Inactive” the individual is not permitted to list or reference the CC-P® Candidate in his or her resume, bio, curriculum vitae or other similar profiles.

  • An individual may return to an “Active” status by submitting the membership fee.

  • In order to have certification reinstated from "inactive" status, the individual may be required to pay a $25 reinstatement fee.

  • Being in the “Inactive” status does not affect the annual program cycle and corresponding continuing education and usage requirements. It does NOT extend the deadline for recertification.

Regaining "Active" Status after a "Lapse": If the reinstatement payment is not received within 1 year of the membership deadline, the individual will be notified that he or she has been removed from the CC-P® Candidate Program.

After removal from the program, the individual will be required to re-satisfy the requirements of the program in order to regain certification and "active" status.

Submitting Maintenance Documentation

CC-P® Candidates are responsible for documenting their continuing education, ACCO community volunteering and continuing usage and submitting their annual paperwork demonstrating satisfaction of those requirements on or before the assigned deadline.  All program participants submit their annual paperwork on or before their membership renewal date.

Failure to Submit Annual Maintenance Paperwork: 
If annual maintenance documentation is not submitted by the individual’s membership renewal date, the CC-P® Candidate will go into an “Inactive” status for up to 60 days.  After 60 days, the individual will be removed from the program and will need to completely satisfy all program requirements to re-enter.