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
Guardian of the Green
November 4, 2025Science Hall: A History
October 9, 2025Energy Analysis and Policy Looks to Future, Celebrates Legacy
September 30, 2025- Read More News
Upcoming Events
- February
- February 4Forestry and Wildlife Ecology SeminarMatt Zine, WDNR — State Natural Areas at 75 Years: Charting a Meaningful Future in Challenging Times1:30 PM, 216 Russell Laboratories
- February 4Tick-Borne Diseases, from Lyme to BabesiosisIndoor Expedition with the Friends of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve7:00 PM, 1360, 425 Henry Mall, Genetics-Biotechnology Center Building
- February 5
- February 5Weston RoundtableCan and Should we Commit to Returning Good Fire to Wisconsin at Ecologically Meaningful Scales?4:15 PM, 1163 Mechanical Engineering Building
- February 7Lakeshore Nature Preserve Volunteer OpportunityEcological Restoration Work Party9:00 AM, Picnic Point entrance kiosk, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2000 University Bay Drive, Madison WI 53705
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.