This year's Earth Day theme is "Planet vs. Plastic!" There are loads of ways to get involved in and around campus this April.
Check out the schedule below! It will be updated as the month progresses.
Multi-Week Events
Jan 16th - Apr 19th: The Goldstein Museum of Design’s latest exhibition, The Soil and The Story, celebrates Black Soilship in the Black Belt by highlighting 12 farms researched in the last three years across Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas.
Tuesday, April 2nd
7-8pm: Climate Lit for Educators Workshop, hosted by the Center for Climate Literacy
Thursday, April 4th
9:30-10:30am: Climate Resilience & Infrastructure Coffee Chat
10am-2pm: UMN Environmental Justice Summit
12-1pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative
3-4pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Coffman Memorial Union Room 103A
Monday, April 8th
10am-4pm: Bell Museum Solar Eclipse Celebration
12-1pm: Sigurd Olson Lecture Series: Wild California & the Antiquities Act. In-person
Tuesday, April 9th
12-5pm: Nutritious U Pantry is open!
3-4pm: Online Webinar – What Would a Bioethics for Agriculture and Food Applications of Cryopreservation Look Like? with Paul Thompson, PhD.
Wednesday, April 10th
12-5pm: Nutritious U Pantry is open!
Thursday, April 11th
8:30am-12:30pm: The Rights of Nature vs. Human Rights? Struggles for environmental, racial, and gender justice in Colombia, Ecuador, and the U.S. Hosted by the Humphrey School. In-Person or livestream available.
12-1pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative
3-4pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Coffman Memorial Union Room 103A
Friday, April 12th
8:30-11:15am: Speaking Science
11:30am-5pm: Institute on the Environment's Sustainability Symposium
Sunday, April 14th
12:00pm: Trash Pickup with SESB Sustainability student group - meet outside McDonald's in Identity Dinkytown
Wednesday, April 17th
9-10am: Climate Resilience & the Environment Coffee Chat
5:30-6:30pm: Humphrey School of Public Affairs – Advancing Climate Solutions. Now. with Sanda Ojiambo. In-person or virtual.
Thursday, April 18th
5-7pm: Global Health Day hosted by the Center for Global Health and Social Responsibility
12-1pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative
3-4pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Coffman Memorial Union Room 103A
Friday, April 19th
3-4pm: Third Annual Earth Day Fest, hosted by the Center for Climate Literacy (virtual)
Saturday, April 20th
9am-12pm: Bee Run Walk Cleanup at Boom Island Park
9:30am-12pm: City of Minneapolis' Earth Day Clean Up. (Multiple sites).
10am-2pm: Bell Museum Spotlight Science: Art + Ecology
10am-3pm: The Great Minnsect Show: Minnesota Insect Show. North Star Ballroom, St. Paul Student Center.
Sunday, April 21st
12:00pm: Office of Sustainability Stormwater Clean Up Event with Campus Cleanup Crew - stay tuned for location details!
Monday, April 22nd: Earth Day! 🌎
9:30-10:30am: Climate Resilience & the Campus Community Coffee Chat
12-1pm: April Science Seminar at Institute on the Environment & the Midwest Climate Adaptation Center.
Tuesday, April 23rd
12-5pm: Nutritious U Food Pantry is open!
Wednesday, April 24th
12-1pm: People & Planet: Takeaways from the Fifth National Climate Assessment. Virtual event.
12-1pm: What's Good for You is Good for the Planet: Webinar on climate & health
12-5pm: Nutritious U Food Pantry is open!
Thursday, April 25th
12-2pm: Keystone Foodmobile: Mobile Food Shelf at CTC
12-1pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative
1-3pm: Arbor Day Tree Planting with the UMN Dept of Forest Resources
3-4pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Coffman Memorial Union Room 103A
4pm: College of Science & Engineering A.O.C. Nier Lecture
Friday, April 26th: Arbor Day! 🌳
9am-6pm: Arbor Day at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
2pm: 2024 Larson Allmaras Lecture featuring Sylvie Brouder, PhD. 335 Borlaug Hall
If you're hosting an Earth Month event that you'd like listed here, contact us.
The Climate Resilience Plan, addendum to the 2023 Climate Action Plan, is now available.
Now nearly one year into our 10 year Climate Action Plan implementation, work is underway by the Office of Sustainability along with working groups and climate champions across our campus. Take a look at what's in progress so far in energy supply, energy demand, commuting, University fleet, and U sponsored travel.
April is Earth Month! Check out our frequently updated list of events to get involved. Check it out.
Join us Friday, March 22nd from 10-11am for a chat from sustainable aviation fuel experts!
We'll be hearing from three speakers, Pat Gruber, CEO of Gevo, Shiri Ramaswamy, professor in Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering at UMN, and William Northrop, professor in Mechanical Engineering at UMN.
Join the Twin Cities Sustainability Committee (TCSC)! The committee was launched in the fall of 2021 with a charge of guiding the MPact 2025 goal to “Build a fully sustainable future” as stated in the Systemwide Strategic Plan. Moving forward, the committee’s work will advise the Twin Cities Office of Sustainability on all activities, inclusive of operations, teaching, research, and outreach. This committee is open to staff, faculty, undergraduate & graduate students. Apply by 4/1.
Learn More
University of Minnesota Twin Cities has won the 2023 GameDay Football Zero Waste Touchdown Challenge in the Food Organics Per Capita category!
This achievement underscores our commitment to waste reduction, putting sustainability at the forefront of our athletic spaces.
The 2023-2024 Systemwide Sustainability Report for the University of Minnesota Board of Regents is now available!
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is aiming to make public buildings like hospitals and schools more resilient against future disasters by paying to install solar panels when they are rebuilt. Read more
Join us for the Climate Resilience & Adaptation Open House!
Wednesday, February 21st, 2024, 3-5pm
1425 University Ave, room 175
Your opinion matters! Join the Office of Sustainability on Wednesday, February 21st from 3pm to 5pm at 1425 University Ave to review and provide insights on the Climate Adaptation and Resilience Plan objectives and strategies. We want to hear what you think - tell us what we missed or what resonates with you. Open house format - come and go as you please. Light refreshments provided.
Fall 2023 Sustainability Advocates from SUST3480 conducted a recent Campus Engagement Project at the University of Minnesota aimed to improve the satisfaction and sustainability of the campus transportation system (Gopher Trip). They distributed a Sustainable Transportation Survey, gathering responses from 57 students to assess current challenges and future possibilities.