University of Wisconsin–Madison
There’s a certain magic to Madison in May. Campus exhales, nature shows off, and for a few weeks, the whole city seems to shift. It’s graduation season, and peak spring migration. And while the spotlight tends to fall on those moving on, it’s also a good time to notice who’s passing through. Each spring and …
Imagine a meal from your favorite restaurant. Now imagine one-third of it sitting in a truck, heading to a waste facility. This is the reality for most eating establishments. A large quantity of a restaurant’s most ordered food is prepared at the beginning of the day, and the portions that are not sold are wasted. …
With spring right around the corner, the Office of Sustainability Education & Outreach Team has compiled a list of environmental books to welcome a new season filled with growth, warmth, and cultivation. Literature plays a vital role in building community, engaging diverse perspectives, and inspiring action to build a more sustainable world. Here is a …
It is the year 2010 and Chris Kucharik, a professor of agronomy and environmental studies at UW–Madison, is talking to a bunch of farmers in rural Wisconsin about a not-so-hot topic: climate change. The town hall meetings are typical Dairyland: brats, beer, and agriculture talk. At the time, the Midwest was experiencing the wettest decade …
The University of Wisconsin–Madison has deployed four state-of-the-art AI recycling assistants called “Oscar Sort” (“Oscars”) across campus, marking an exciting step in the university’s commitment to sustainable operations, education, and research. The Oscars, which use technology developed by the company Intuitive AI, combine waste bins with interactive, digital displays that are designed to make waste …
The Midwest Climate Summit—a three-day gathering of climate leaders, researchers, and professionals focused on expanding knowledge, accelerating climate action, and catalyzing new partnerships for an equitable Midwestern response to the climate crisis—is coming to Madison from April 30-May 2, 2025 at the Memorial Union. The Summit will bring together bright minds working in government, education, …
In his late twenties, University of Wisconsin–Madison senior Nick Brennan decided he wanted to go back to school. Brennan felt that “mechanical engineering would be a good way for me to get a generic, versatile degree that I could take and do whatever I wanted with,” so he decided to enroll at Madison Area Technical …
A group of researchers from the UW–Madison Office of Sustainability, the La Follette School of Public Affairs, and the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies have partnered with two student organizations to assess potential locations on campus that might be suitable for solar panels. “People frequently ask our office about rooftop solar,” said Josh Arnold, …
This article is a contribution by Kim Wahl, who is a lecturer for the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and the Office of Sustainability. As part of University of Wisconsin–Madison’s comprehensive environmental sustainability initiative and goals, sustainability opportunities have continued to grow across campus. These opportunities include a sustainability internship program, a corporate sustainability internship program, …
Grandma Josephine Mandamin, an elder of the Anishinabek Nation, was known as the Water Walker. According to the Great Lakes nonprofit, FLOW, Grandma Josephine dedicated her life to raising awareness about water issues through “water walks.” Since beginning the walks in 2003, she logged more than 25,000 kilometers, or over 15,534 miles, walking around Lake …