This year's Earth Day theme is "Planet vs. Plastic!" There are loads of ways to get involved in and around campus this April.
Check out the schedule below! It will be updated as the month progresses.
Multi-Week Events
Jan 16th - Apr 19th: The Goldstein Museum of Design’s latest exhibition, The Soil and The Story, celebrates Black Soilship in the Black Belt by highlighting 12 farms researched in the last three years across Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas.
Tuesday, April 2nd
7-8pm: Climate Lit for Educators Workshop, hosted by the Center for Climate Literacy
Thursday, April 4th
9:30-10:30am: Climate Resilience & Infrastructure Coffee Chat
10am-2pm: UMN Environmental Justice Summit
12-1pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative
3-4pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Coffman Memorial Union Room 103A
Monday, April 8th
10am-4pm: Bell Museum Solar Eclipse Celebration
12-1pm: Sigurd Olson Lecture Series: Wild California & the Antiquities Act. In-person
Tuesday, April 9th
12-5pm: Nutritious U Pantry is open!
3-4pm: Online Webinar – What Would a Bioethics for Agriculture and Food Applications of Cryopreservation Look Like? with Paul Thompson, PhD.
Wednesday, April 10th
12-5pm: Nutritious U Pantry is open!
Thursday, April 11th
8:30am-12:30pm: The Rights of Nature vs. Human Rights? Struggles for environmental, racial, and gender justice in Colombia, Ecuador, and the U.S. Hosted by the Humphrey School. In-Person or livestream available.
12-1pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative
3-4pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Coffman Memorial Union Room 103A
Friday, April 12th
8:30-11:15am: Speaking Science
11:30am-5pm: Institute on the Environment's Sustainability Symposium
Sunday, April 14th
12:00pm: Trash Pickup with SESB Sustainability student group - meet outside McDonald's in Identity Dinkytown
Wednesday, April 17th
9-10am: Climate Resilience & the Environment Coffee Chat
5:30-6:30pm: Humphrey School of Public Affairs – Advancing Climate Solutions. Now. with Sanda Ojiambo. In-person or virtual.
Thursday, April 18th
5-7pm: Global Health Day hosted by the Center for Global Health and Social Responsibility
12-1pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative
3-4pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Coffman Memorial Union Room 103A
Friday, April 19th
3-4pm: Third Annual Earth Day Fest, hosted by the Center for Climate Literacy (virtual)
Saturday, April 20th
9am-12pm: Bee Run Walk Cleanup at Boom Island Park
9:30am-12pm: City of Minneapolis' Earth Day Clean Up. (Multiple sites).
10am-2pm: Bell Museum Spotlight Science: Art + Ecology
10am-3pm: The Great Minnsect Show: Minnesota Insect Show. North Star Ballroom, St. Paul Student Center.
Sunday, April 21st
12:00pm: Office of Sustainability Stormwater Clean Up Event with Campus Cleanup Crew - stay tuned for location details!
Monday, April 22nd: Earth Day! 🌎
9:30-10:30am: Climate Resilience & the Campus Community Coffee Chat
12-1pm: April Science Seminar at Institute on the Environment & the Midwest Climate Adaptation Center.
Tuesday, April 23rd
12-5pm: Nutritious U Food Pantry is open!
Wednesday, April 24th
12-1pm: People & Planet: Takeaways from the Fifth National Climate Assessment. Virtual event.
12-1pm: What's Good for You is Good for the Planet: Webinar on climate & health
12-5pm: Nutritious U Food Pantry is open!
Thursday, April 25th
12-2pm: Keystone Foodmobile: Mobile Food Shelf at CTC
12-1pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative
1-3pm: Arbor Day Tree Planting with the UMN Dept of Forest Resources
3-4pm: Nutritious U Free Meals at Coffman Memorial Union Room 103A
4pm: College of Science & Engineering A.O.C. Nier Lecture
Friday, April 26th: Arbor Day! 🌳
9am-6pm: Arbor Day at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
2pm: 2024 Larson Allmaras Lecture featuring Sylvie Brouder, PhD. 335 Borlaug Hall
If you're hosting an Earth Month event that you'd like listed here, contact us.
The University of Minnesota Twin Cities' new Climate Action Plan (CAP) looks toward the future of sustainability on campus. The U of M has already cut its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 51%, No. 2 in the Big Ten for carbon cuts.
Learn more about how the U of M is creating a sustainable campus and future!
A new sustainability club on the Twin Cities campus, UMN Seedlings, collaborated with M Food Co. to put on a sustainable lunch event this past April. Using HowGood, a food sustainability database, UMN Seedlings were able to create an environmentally friendly meal plan aimed to raise environmental awareness in the campus community. Learn more
by Ella Chilson
University of Minnesota undergraduate and graduate student individuals and groups recently received Systemwide Sustainability Student Impact Awards during April’s Sustainability Symposium for their efforts leading the way toward a future in which people and the environment prosper together. Learn more
For the second year in a row, the University of Minnesota (U of M) participated in the Times Higher Ed Impact Rankings (THE Impact Rankings), which in 2023 ranked submissions for 1,591 institutions from 112 countries/regions. The U of M ranked eighth in the U.S. for the overall ranking and in the 101-200 range worldwide.
The U of M is a founding member of the Minnesota Cleantech Consortium, announced today at the Minnesota Cleantech Innovation Day. Learn more
The University of Minnesota Twin Cities has earned a STARS® Gold rating in recognition of its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS®) measures and encourages sustainability in all aspects of higher education. Learn more
University of Minnesota Twin Cities Climate Action Plan will be presented as part of the MPact 2025 Sustainability update to the Board of Regents on Thursday, May 11th during the Board's Finance and Operations Committee meeting! Show your support for the Climate Action Plan! Learn more:
If you are anything like me, Molly Vagle, and love to buy a bunch of fresh produce and vegetables to have on hand in your home for meals or snacks- then you know the struggle of trying to use all your produce before it goes bad. Food waste is a big environmental issue that has implications on the planet and greenhouse gas emissions. Storing vegetables correctly is the first step in making sure the produce is good for use and does not end up in the trash! Learn more:
It’s just about move-out time! Need to move or downsize and don't know what to do with your stuff? Donate items to the Pack and Give Back program! Store your stuff with the Student Summer Storage program! Learn more:
Apply today for the Student Sustainability Communications Assistant position! Learn more