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
- December
- December 13CANCELED – Ecological Restoration Work PartyArboretum Core Area and Curtis Prairie9:00 AM, Meet at Visitor Center, UW–Madison Arboretum
- December 14
- December 20
- December 21Preserve Trees in WinterNature Walk with the Friends of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve1:30 PM, Picnic Point entrance kiosk, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2000 University Bay Drive, Madison WI 53705
- December 21Family Nature Program: Winter SolsticeArboretum1:30 PM, 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.