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Institute on the Environment — University of Minnesota

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Institute on the Environment — University of Minnesota

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The Institute on the Environment is leading the way toward a future in which people and planet prosper together.

We envision a future in which sustainable agriculture feeds the world; renewable energy powers healthy homes, efficient vehicles and flourishing businesses; every person has access to food, clean water and shelter; oceans, lakes and rivers are unimpaired; cities have vibrant economies, neighborhoods and cultures; and thriving ecosystems support thriving economies and societies. That's why the University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment (IonE) is taking a new approach. IonE discovers solutions to Earth’s most pressing environmental problems by conducting transformative research, developing the next generation of global leaders and building world-changing partnerships.

10/26/2026

Sixteen new affiliates from eight different colleges, schools, and units are joining IonE’s Affiliates program – a network of more than 275 scholars and practitioners, spanning disciplines and working across the University of Minnesota.

Nine of the new affiliates are based at University of Minnesota Duluth, where Julie Etterson currently co-leads IonE’s Duluth hub with Afton Clarke-Sather.

“This year’s affiliates include mathematicians, psychologists, educators, humanities scholars, Indigenous studies scholars, social scientists, ecologists, and wildlife professionals,” says Etterson, an IonE Fellow and Faculty Leadership Council member. “The IonE Affiliates program gives them a shared home for sustainability work.”

Meet the new Associates and Fellows and learn more about the affiliate network: https://z.umn.edu/new-affiliates

10/12/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us for IonE’s 2026 Annual Meeting! This year's gathering explored the power of making connections.

From award-winning scholar Damon Centola’s keynote on the science of collective intelligence, to a fireside chat with University of Minnesota Duluth Chancellor Charles Nies and IonE Executive Director Jessica Hellmann, to our first-ever poster session and share outs from the IonE community – participants shared what’s possible when we work together.

Let's break it down by the numbers: the meeting had 200+ attendees, 19 lightning-style talks, 39 posters showcasing Impact Goal projects and IonE programs, and 65 pieces of upcycled screenprinted swag.

The Annual Meeting is the one time each year when faculty, staff, and students from across the University of Minnesota's five campuses come together with community partners to connect and share ideas about sustainability in Minnesota, the region, and the world. Until next year!

10/07/2026

Global fertilizer consumption has doubled since 1980, but some regions that have historically overused fertilizer, including China and parts of Europe, have taken steps to reduce their use. Those are among the findings of a new global dataset from the Institute on the Environment — University of Minnesota z.umn.edu/bo2r

09/23/2026

A new paper from 175 volunteer scholars, led by IonE’s Melissa Kenney (University of Minnesota), Bob Kopp (Rutgers University), and Costa Samaras (Carnegie Mellon University), outlines research priorities that can inform future national, sub-national, and sectoral climate assessments.

This is the first paper in the U.S. Climate Collection, a joint special collection created by the American Geophysical Union (AGU) and the American Meteorological Society to publish U.S.-focused climate assessment science. The commentary describes the advancements in science since the last national climate assessment and identifies opportunities for future synthesis research.

We sat down with lead author Kenney to talk about the priorities, the science, and why efforts like these matter. She emphasizes that this paper isn't just by scientists, for scientists. Its purpose is to support the research needed to help communities make climate-informed decisions.

“It is my deepest professional obligation to make sure that the specialized knowledge that I have – that our scientific community has – is not just held within the scientific community, but it is translated and shared in ways that make that science accessible and usable to everyone,” says Kenney.

Read the Q&A: https://environment.umn.edu/insights/research-roadmap-us-climate-assessments

Explore the full U.S. Climate Collection paper: https://www.agu.org/USClimateCollection/collections

09/14/2026

Optimizing fertilizer – correcting underuse while reducing overuse – could produce enough crops to feed the world while limiting environmental harms. But achieving this balance requires knowing how much fertilizer is being used around the world – information that, until now, has only existed in fragments or snapshots in time.

A new global dataset provides crop-specific nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizer application rates for every country spanning 1980 to 2022. Deepak Ray, a research professor at IonE, spent five years developing the new dataset in collaboration with Tek Sapkota of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center and Achim Dobermann of the International Fertilizer Association.

“This information can help identify regions that aren’t using the right amount or combination of fertilizers to achieve optimal crop yield,” says Ray. “It also can identify areas that are using too much fertilizer, which is financially and environmentally costly.”

Read the University of Minnesota research brief: https://twin-cities.umn.edu/news-events/first-its-kind-fertilizer-study-reveals-where-world-can-boost-food-production-and-cut

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Explore the global fertilizer use dataset project: https://environment.umn.edu/research/projects/global-fertilizer-use-dataset

09/09/2026

Just started the semester and looking for a part-time opportunity? The Institute on the Environment is hiring undergraduate students! We are looking for curious and motivated University of Minnesota students to support sustainability education and programming.

Open positions include:

• Undergraduate International Programs Student Project Assistant – Curious about international sustainability collaboration? This position will assist the IonE Program Director for International Partnerships with day-to-day tasks for two large international projects with Germany. Apply by Sunday, September 13: https://hr.myu.umn.edu/jobs/extstu/375932.

• Undergraduate Communications Assistant – Eager to build hands-on communications experience and comfortable juggling multiple projects? This position will build storytelling and outreach skills by helping connect students with interdisciplinary environmental programs, courses and events. Apply by Sunday, September 20: https://hr.myu.umn.edu/jobs/extstu/375735.

• Undergraduate Program Assistant – Want to plan events and lead outreach activities? This position will involve planning sustainability-focused educational events, creating website content and building relationships with student groups and other University partners. Apply by Sunday, September 20: https://hr.myu.umn.edu/jobs/extstu/375734.

09/08/2026

Are you – or do you know – a member of the University of Minnesota community who should be part of the Institute on the Environment network? We’re currently accepting applications for new Fellows and Associates.

The IonE Affiliates program connects University of Minnesota–based scholars, educators and practitioners, supporting them as they collaborate on sustainability research, education and engagement. Affiliates are central to IonE's work, bringing expertise from across disciplines and creating real-world impact.

Join a statewide network advancing sustainability through collaboration. Apply by September 30: https://environment.umn.edu/network/affiliates/how-apply-affiliate

09/03/2026

Seven scholars have been appointed as the Institute on the Environment’s first-ever research professors, establishing a new academic home at the University of Minnesota for interdisciplinary, outcomes-oriented work in sustainability.

Congratulations to Dana James, Melissa Kenney, Nathalie Lambrecht, Deepak Ray, Jennifer Schmitt, Kaihui Song and Nathaniel Springer!

Together, they represent expertise spanning global land use, food systems, industrial ecology, planetary health, energy, data science and more.

Meet IonE’s first research professors and learn more about their work: https://z.umn.edu/ione-first-ever-research-professors

08/31/2026

IonE is looking for an organized project manager, analytical thinker and relationship builder to join our team as a Grantmaking Program Manager.

This is an opportunity to build strong systems, improve the experience of applicants and funded teams and help shape the future of grantmaking at one of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities’s leading interdisciplinary institutes.

Apply by Sunday, September 20: https://hr.myu.umn.edu/jobs/ext/375627.

Interested in learning more? Register for our informational webinar on Wednesday, September 9, at 4 p.m. CT: https://z.umn.edu/GrantmakingJob.

07/20/2026

Where do you turn to for environmental and sustainability stories – and what keeps you engaged? 🔍🌱

Your perspective will inform how IonE communicates. Take our anonymous survey to help us do that in ways that feel useful and accessible to you. The survey takes about 5-7 minutes to complete and will close on Thursday, July 30, 2026.

Take the survey: https://z.umn.edu/IonE-Comms-Research-Survey

Address

1954 Buford Avenue
Saint Paul, MN
55108

Opening Hours

Monday	8:30am - 4:30pm
Tuesday	8:30am - 4:30pm
Wednesday	8:30am - 4:30pm
Thursday	8:30am - 4:30pm
Friday	8:30am - 4:30pm

Telephone

+16126269553

Website

http://environment.umn.edu/, http://www.facebook.com/UMNIonE, http://www.youtube.com/user/UMNIonE, https://www.linkedin.

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