Conservation Ecology is a synthetic discipline that provides a scientific foundation for resource management efforts aimed to conserve, restore and sustain the full range of biological diversity in a particular landscape. This biological diversity includes genetic variation among individuals and populations; species richness; habitat heterogeneity, and the diversity of interactions among species and the human communities who depend upon them. 

The Conservation Ecology Graduate Certificate program at NAU  provides a means for early- and mid-career professionals to gain exposure and competence in the theory and practice of conservation ecology.  The program is designed for environmental professionals who wish to briefly return to academia to upgrade or refine their skills in interdisciplinary conservation sciences. These skills may then be put to use through work for government agencies, for tribal governments, or for non-profit and for-profit stewardship organizations. 

The program brings together conservation-oriented coursework in Forestry, Biological Sciences and Environmental Sciences,  with support from the non-academic interdisciplinary Center for Sustainable Environments.  The 18 credit-hour certificate program is administered by the Center for Environmental Sciences and Education.

The program focuses on field research, habitat restoration, endangered species recovery, and conservation management with an emphasis on human dimensions of landscape-level and biological conservation.