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ISO 14001:2026: Environmental Management Systems (EMS)

Name: ISO 14001:2026: Environmental Management Systems (EMS)
Rating: 4.6 (8063 reviews)

Implement and audit an EMS — environmental aspects and impacts, life cycle perspective and environmental performance

Created byCristian Vlad Lupa, rigcert.education

Last updated 7/2026

English

Arabic [Auto],English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Understand environmental management and its key concepts
Coordinate the implementation of an environmental management system in your organization
Participate in audits according to ISO 14001:2026
Acquire the knowledge to confidently go for certification as environmental practitioner or auditor
Help an organization enhance its environmental performance
Identify the environmental aspects and impacts associated with activities, products and services

Course content

8 sections • 42 lectures • 5h 8m total length

Introduction4:20
About the structure of the course and administrative aspects for a great learning experience
Basic aspects about environmental management4:20
About the concept of environmental management, the challenges for society and the purpose of the standards published by ISO as part of the ISO 14000 series
What is an Environmental Management System (EMS)?7:23
Generic information about the environmental management system proposed by ISO 14001:2026
Critical factors for the succes of an EMS6:31
Which are the critical factors that contribute to the success of an environmental management system in an organization. Top management plays a key role
ISO 14001 and related standards7:52
About the purpose, history and structure of ISO 14001. A brief overview of the standards published by ISO as part of the ISO 14000 series

Understanding the organization and its context8:57
About the determination of the internal and external issues part of the organization's context. Examples of such issues and methods for their identification. About environmental conditions affected by the organization and capable of affecting the organization
Understanding the needs and expectations of interested parties7:52
About the identification of stakeholdrers and their requirements, including those that can become compliance obligations
Determining the scope of the environmental management system7:13
What represents the scope of the environmental management system and how the scope should be phrased. Examples for defining the scope of the EMS
Environmental management system7:48
Generic requirements in relation to the environmental management system. About the PDCA (Plan Do Check Act) framework and its application to the elements of an EMS. A recapitulation of the requirements in clause 4 of ISO 14001.

Leadership and commitment7:10
What is top management expect to do to demonstrate its leadership and commitment with respect to the environmental management system
Environmental policy7:08
The requirements of ISO 14001:2026 for the environmental policy. What the policy should include and how is should be implemented in the organization
Roles, responsibilities and authorities6:51
Top management assigns responsibilities and authorities for environmental management, including responsibilities in relation to the environmental management system and its improvement. A recapitulation of the requirements in clause 5 of ISO 14001.:2026

Environmental aspects and impacts. What is the difference?9:36
What is an environmental aspect and what does ISO 14001 require in relation to the identification of environmental aspects. The relationship between environmental aspects and impacts
Determining environmental aspects part 17:10
An example of identification of environmental aspects and associated impacts in relation to the life cycle stages of a product
Determining environmental aspects part 26:29
Second part of the process for determining environmental aspects and associated impacts.
Significant environmental aspects10:43
The methodology for determining significant environmental aspects. What criteria to consider and why determining significance is important
Compliance obligations7:07
What are compliance obligations and how should the organization manage those
Risks and opportunities8:06
Determining risks and opportunities relevant for the environmental management system and the environmental performance of the organization
Planning action7:02
About planning actions to address significant environmental aspects, compliance obligations and the risks and opportunities identified
Environmental objectives7:44
The requirements of ISO 14001 for the environmental objectives. What means for environmental objectives to be measurable
Planning to achieve the environmental objectives6:21
About the planning for the achivement of environmental objectives. How such plans should look like with examples
Planning of changes7:25
How changes that can impact the environmental management system should be planned and implemented. A recapitulation of the requirements for the EMS in clause 6 of ISO 14001:2026
Environmental aspects identification

Resources4:26
About determining and providing the resources needed for the establishment, implementation, maintenance and continual improvement of the environmental management system
Competence6:54
About the process that should be established to ensure that the competence required for the persons working on behalf of the organization is available
Awareness4:49
All persons working on behalf of the organization shall be aware of the environmental policy, their contribution to the effectiveness of the EMS or the consequences of not conforming to requirements
Communication6:48
The requirements of ISO 14001 for the processes that the organization should establish for its internal and external communications relevant to the environmental management system
The documentation of the environmental management system8:28
Generic requirements for the documented information that the environmental management system should include.
Creating, updating and controlling documented information9:02
The requirements of ISO 14001 for creating and updating documents and the controls that should be applied to documents to ensure that they are available and suitable for use where and when needed. A recapitulation of the requirements in clause 7 of ISO 14001

Operational planning and control part 17:59
Operational planning and control part 29:43
Considering the life cycle of products and services and the ability to influence the environmental aspects associated with different life cycle stages from design and development. Controls for procurement and outsourcing
Emergency preparedness and response7:32
Identifying potential emergencies that can have environmental impacts and prepairing a response
Testing the emergency plans and preparations8:27
About the processes to test emergency plans and preparations to ensure that they can be relied upon. Improving preparations after testing or after real emergencies. A recapitulation of the requirements in clause 8 of ISO 14001

Monitoring, measurement, analysis and evaluation7:33
The organization must determine what needs to be monitored and measured, the methods for monitoring and measuring, when and how to monitor, measure and evaluate performance. About indicators for evaluating performance
Evaluation of compliance6:37
The process to evaluate fulfilment of compliance obligations and how to manage instances of noncompliance. Not all noncompliance situations are to be considered nonconformities
Internal audit9:25
The requirements of ISO 14001:2026 for the internal audit of the environmental management system. Requirements for scheduling audits and the documents generated (audit progamme, plan, report)
Management review8:55
Top management shall review the environmental management system at planned intervals to ensure its continuing suitability, adequacy and effectiveness. The requirements of ISO 14001 for the input elements to the management review and for the outputs of this process. A recapitulation of clause 9 of ISO 14001:2026

Continual improvement5:30
About improving continually the environmental management system to enhance the environmental performance of the organization. What are common sources of improvement opportunities
Nonconformity and corrective action8:26
What represents a nonconformity? The process to manage nonconformities by addressing their impact, determining their causes and implementing corrective actions to prevent reccurence.
Overview of the environmental management system10:54
A recapitulation of the requirements for an environmental management system according to ISO 14001:2026
Certification to ISO 140016:24
About the certification process to ISO 14001 for both organizations (for their management systems) and individuals (as environmental management professionals)
Thank you and good bye!3:27
Thank you very much for your time and patience and I hope the course was interesting and useful
Bonus lecture - My other courses6:18
Discover related courses on management systems, auditing, and compliance, including iso 14001, 50001, 45001, 9001, and iso 27000 series, plus artificial intelligence and data protection topics.
ISO 14001:2026 Environmental management system quiz
Should we adopt an Environmental Management System?

Requirements

No specific prior knowledge required.
Familiarity with management system elements and ISO standards can help but is not mandatory

Description

ISO 14001 is the internationally recognized standard for environmental management systems (EMS) — the framework any organization can use to manage its environmental responsibilities in a structured way: protecting the environment, meeting its compliance obligations and improving its environmental performance over time. This course covers ISO 14001:2026, the current edition of the standard, explaining all of its requirements in detail.

Whether your organization is implementing an EMS for the first time, maintaining its certification through the transition from the 2015 edition, or you are building your own expertise in environmental management — this course shows you what an environmental management system comprises and how it is implemented in any organization, regardless of size, sector or the environmental aspects of its activities, products and services.

Course structure

The course opens with an introduction to environmental management, the critical factors for successful implementation, and the ISO 14000 series of standards. The subsequent sections correspond to the clauses of ISO 14001:2026:

Understanding the context of the organization — including environmental conditions such as climate change, biodiversity and ecosystem health, which the 2026 edition brings into focus
The needs and expectations of interested parties, and compliance obligations
The scope of the environmental management system
The environmental policy and environmental objectives
Environmental aspects and impacts — identifying aspects, understanding the aspect–impact relationship, and the methodology for determining significant environmental aspects
Risks and opportunities, planning actions to address them, and planning changes to the EMS
Competence, awareness, and internal and external communication
The documented information that supports the EMS and its control
Operational control — meeting environmental requirements with a life cycle perspective
Emergency preparedness and response
Monitoring, measurement, analysis and evaluation of environmental performance
Internal audits and management review
Continual improvement and the management of nonconformities

All requirements are discussed with practical examples and implementation guidance, including the key concepts of environmental management: the EMS scope, compliance obligations, environmental aspects and impacts, the life cycle perspective, the hierarchy of environmental controls, and the planning of changes.

Who this course is for

Environmental managers, coordinators and EMS implementers — for a first implementation or the transition from ISO 14001:2015 to the 2026 edition
Sustainability and ESG professionals building the management-system foundation of environmental performance
Internal auditors and consultants working with environmental management systems
Quality and health & safety professionals (ISO 9001, ISO 45001) extending into environmental management or integrated systems
Managers and business owners preparing their organization for ISO 14001 certification

If you intend to pursue certification as a practitioner, implementer or auditor of environmental management systems, this course equips you with the information you need to prepare for and pass a certification exam.

Enroll to master ISO 14001:2026 — and understand how an organization enhances its environmental performance through an effective environmental management system.

Who this course is for:

Environmental managers
Environmental management system auditors and consultants
Environmental engineers and technicians
Those interested in pursuing a career in environmental management
Professionals preparing for certification to ISO 14001:2026
Individuals looking to become familiar with ISO 14001 and its requirements

ISO 14001:2026: Environmental Management Systems (EMS)

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Introduction to environmental management and the ISO 14000 series of standards5 lectures • 30min

Context of the organization (clause 4 of ISO 14001:2026)4 lectures • 32min

Leadership (clause 5 of ISO 14001:2026)3 lectures • 21min

Planning (clause 6 of ISO 14001:2026)11 lectures • 1hr 18min

Support (clause 7 of ISO 14001:2026)6 lectures • 40min

Operation (clause 8 of ISO 14001:2026)4 lectures • 34min

Performance evaluation (clause 9 of ISO 14001:2026)4 lectures • 33min

Improvement (clause 10 of ISO 14001:2026)7 lectures • 41min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: