Purposeful Living Project

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Limited Cohort Spaces Available

Join the waitlist now to get early access to Purposeful Living Certificate details.

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Purposeful Living Certificate – 20 Hours

Discover how to live with purpose, build resilience, and create positive change. This 20-hour certificate connects well-being, neurobiology, nature, hope, and sustainability to help you make a meaningful impact at home, work, and in your community.

Earn a Certificate and a LinkedIn badge!

Cost: $495 (CAD) + HST

- 2025-26 pricing
- In-Person
  - 3-day immersive course.
  - Have a group interested in the certificate? We can deliver it on-site. Contact us to learn more.
- Online
  - 10-week program featuring 2-hour interactive sessions each week.
  - Apply your learning with a personally designed community project.
- In Costa Rica
  - Explore delivery options with our partners at Green Communities Costa Rica.
  - Pricing included as part of their package.

Learn how happiness, purpose, personal well-being, and sustainability are deeply connected.

Through interactive sessions, reflection, nature-based learning, and a hands-on completion project, participants will explore practical ways to strengthen their own well-being while contributing to healthier communities and a more sustainable world.

Positive Psychology & Happiness
Explore the science of happiness and well-being, including practical tools that support optimism, gratitude, resilience, hope, and a stronger sense of purpose.

Neurobiology, Emotions & Purposeful Living
Learn how emotions, habits, stress, and the brain influence well-being, decision-making, resilience, and purposeful living.

Purposeful Living & Personal Growth
Reflect on personal goals, values, strengths, and lived experiences to better understand what creates meaning and direction in daily life.

Nature, Health & Resilience
Reconnect with nature as a source of restoration, learning, and inspiration. Explore how nature supports mental health, emotional well-being, and long-term resilience.

Sustainable Happiness
Discover how personal happiness can support individual, community, and global well-being without compromising other people, the environment, or future generations (O’Brien, 2005)

Gratitude, Compassion & Change
Build practical habits that support emotional well-being, self-awareness, compassion, and positive personal and professional change.

Consumption, Food Security & Community Impact
Examine how daily choices, food systems, consumption, and supply chains connect to personal wellness, community resilience, and sustainability.

Strengths, Leadership & Workplace Application
Identify signature strengths and character traits that can support purpose-driven leadership, healthier workplaces, and more values-aligned decision-making.

Hands-On Completion Project
Apply your learning through a purposeful project that supports personal growth, community connection, workplace impact, or sustainability action.

Learn how to apply these principles to build healthier, more engaged teams and contribute to stronger, more supportive communities.
Strengthen your ability to lead with intention, empathy, hope, and genuine care for people, communities, and the planet.
Discover powerful ways nature can enhance your mental health, creativity, emotional balance, reflection, and long-term resilience.
Learn and grow alongside like-minded people who are also committed to living and leading with purpose.
Grow with Purpose: Rediscover lifelong tools for cultivating happiness, gratitude, resilience, self-compassion, and a deeper sense of meaning in your daily life.
Complete a personally meaningful project that helps you apply what you

Students
Educators
People Leaders
General Public

Chris Adam, MEd., M.S.M.

Retired Director, Sustainability Office Dawson College
Executive Director, Earthvalues Institute, President, Cadameco Consulting Inc.

Chris has earned national and international recognition in education, drawing on expertise in wildlife and fish management, sustainability education, and leadership training. He directed Dawson College’s Office of Sustainability in Montreal until 2025 and co-developed the Sustainable Happiness Certificate with Dr. Catherine O’Brien. He received the Governor General of Canada’s Meritorious Service Medal for engaging people of all ages in action projects that advance well-being for all. Chris brings this experience to the co-development of the Purposeful Living Certificate, helping participants connect personal well-being, purpose, and meaningful action.

Luisa Montes, LCH, MPC

Purposeful Living Representative – Latin America
Program Development, Cadameco Consultants Inc.

Luisa Montes is a clinical psychologist specializing in child and adolescent behaviour. She has taught at several universities in Mexico and holds a diploma in community theatre. Her work includes designing empowerment-based programs that support violence-free female identities, along with experience in radio and internet TV production. A published poet with a deep interest in the welfare of all living things, Luisa serves as the Purposeful Living Certificate representative for Latin America. She brings this diverse experience to the co-development of the Purposeful Living Certificate, helping connect personal empowerment, well-being, creativity, and meaningful action.

Jennifer De Vera, BA, MEd

Office of Sustainability, Dawson College

Jenn de Vera brings a strong entrepreneurial background and deep commitment to sustainability education. For 16 years, she founded and operated Ethan’s Playground, a successful preschool in Montreal. She now supports the Sustainable Dawson movement at Dawson College, bringing dynamic leadership, organizational expertise, and community-building skills to the Sustainability Office. Her work includes coordinating volunteers, planning events, supporting Dawson’s gardens and beehives, and leading outreach with learners from pre-kindergarten to university. Jenn holds a BA in Community Studies and a Master of Education in Sustainability, Creativity, and Innovation, and is an avid gardener and cyclist.

Jonathan Cerdas

Co-Founder, Green Communities Costa Rica
Purposeful Living Representative – Costa Rica

Jonathan Cerdas, co-founder of Green Communities, is a leader in sustainable tourism and hospitality with over 20 years of experience. Trained in Business Tourism in Costa Rica, his work integrating clean technology into coffee production earned recognition from the National University (UNA). A Rio+20 UN speaker, Jonathan led Green Communities to win the World Coffee Challenge in 2022 -the first such win for Costa Rica with organic coffee. He also founded Tamí Lodge and Santos Tour and has spoken internationally across Canada, the U.S., and Costa Rica, advancing responsible tourism and regenerative development.

Rebecca Morin, BA

Student Government Coordinator

Rebecca is a Purposeful Living facilitator with over 15 years of experience in communications, digital strategy, and community engagement at Canadore College. As Student Government Coordinator, she supports a vibrant, inclusive campus community by empowering student leaders and enhancing the student experience. A long-standing member of Canadore’s Sustainability Taskforce, Rebecca brings a strong commitment to personal well-being, environmental stewardship, and community impact.

Jesse Russell BA (Hons), MEd (in progress)

Project Leader, Living Sustainability Centre

Jesse’s work focuses on carbon reduction, food and water security, and hands-on sustainability innovation, from hydroponic grow pods to a scaled clean water demonstration site. Under his leadership, Canadore became the first Canadian college to earn both FSC and SFI forest certifications and achieved a Gold AASHE sustainability rating. A national Living Lab project leader and Purposeful Living facilitator, Jesse also manages Farm 17 in Costa Rica and co-founded Farm 17 Coffee Co., creating meaningful opportunities for students to engage in sustainable development through global experiential learning.

Purposeful Living Facilitator Training Certification

Enhance your leadership and help others create well-being for all. Our facilitator training equips educators, leaders, and changemakers with the tools to bring purposeful living classrooms, workplaces, and community initiatives.

Price: $2500 (CAD)

Costa Rica Canadore College