The Center for the Environment is an interdisciplinary hub of environmental research that is committed to generating transformative solutions to our deepest societal challenges including: climate change, air pollution, access to clean water, food insecurity, biodiversity loss and infectious diseases.
By the numbers
131
Center scholars
46
Proposals/Grants supported
1000+
Activity participants
150
Journal articles published
in Jan-June 2025
Environmental Research Creativity Week
Feb 23 – 27
The Center’s mission
The center serves as a cross-cutting collaboration hub, encouraging partners, faculty and students to advance research projects in areas including biodiversity, environmental justice, planetary health, environmental solutions, and climate change. Here’s a closer look at who we are, what we do, and why it matters for our community, our region and our world.
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Featured research & stories
Human-wildlife interaction in Madagascar
Three WashU researchers studying human-wildlife interaction in the forests of Madagascar have approached their research in a unique way – one that recognizes that protecting wildlife requires protecting people.
WashU Public Health launches research network to solve urgent health, environmental challenges
The School of Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis has launched a new research network — Solutions through Planetary Health Research (SPHERE) — to integrate public health and environmental research with the goal to improve the interconnected health of people and the planet.
Climate Across the Curriculum
WashU partners with Gateway STEM High School to connect students to opportunities in the sciences
The WashU ecosystem
Within the WashU ecosystem of environmental research, education, and practice, the Center for the Environment serves as a connector. Much like a biodiversity corridor, we work to create space where our partners within the ecosystem and across distinct disciplines come together to address our world’s biggest environmental challenges.
In the news
WashU study found gaps in St. Louis’ emergency preparedness ahead of tornado, calls for change
A Washington University study found gaps in St. Louis’ emergency preparedness ahead of the May 16 EF3 tornado, calling for local public and nonprofit groups to create a support network ahead of any future emergencies.
Real vs. Fake Christmas Trees: Which Is Actually Better for the Planet? | What Do I Do With This?
Between gift wrap, decorations, lights, food, and Christmas trees, the holidays create a shocking amount of waste. But what actually belongs in the trash, and what doesn’t?
Heat-seeking beetles drawn to plants that glow in infrared
To attract their pollinators, plants have long produced vivid flowers—but the world wasn’t always so colorful.