Study here.
Change the world.
We’re confronting environmental challenges through transformative research, by bridging classrooms and communities, and forging partnerships locally and globally.
Training Tomorrow's Environmental Leaders
The Nelson Institute values and is committed to a liberal arts and professional education, built on the premise that complex environmental issues can best be understood through familiarity with diverse perspectives, and integration of the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
Research for a Better Future
Research drives the social and technological innovation needed to confront the challenges of a rapidly changing global environment. The Nelson Institute is a catalyst of imaginative research that combines skills and knowledge from the humanities, engineering, business, and law to the biological, physical, health, and social sciences.
Nelson News and Events
Latest News
Driving Sustainability Through Entrepreneurship
September 21, 2026Nora Álvarez-Berríos MS’01
September 17, 2026
Steven Lawry PhD ‘88
September 17, 2026Ken Conca MS’85
September 17, 2026Rob Beattie ’81
September 17, 2026- Read More News
Upcoming Events
- October
- October 1
- October 3Ecological Restoration Work PartyArboretum Grady Tract9:00 AM, Meet at Grady Tract parking lot (SE corner Seminole Hwy & W Beltline Frontage Rd), UW–Madison Arboretum
- October 4
- October 8Ecological Restoration Work PartyArboretum Curtis Prairie Area Seed Collecting1:00 PM, Meet at Visitor Center, UW–Madison Arboretum
- October 10Ecological Restoration Work PartyArboretum Curtis Prairie Area9:00 AM, Meet at Visitor Center, UW–Madison Arboretum
Support the Nelson Institute
The Nelson Institute welcomes and is grateful for various forms of support – discretionary funds for our many programs, internships and mentoring opportunities for students, and introductions to new networks that can help advance our reach and build partnerships around Wisconsin and the world.