Every April 22 I think about 1970.
I was just a glint in my parents’ eyes for the first Earth Day, but I think about the dire environmental challenges, the mobilization of an environmental movement, and the signing of the National Environmental Protection Act.
In 1970, my parents had lead in their paint, their gasoline, and their drinking water. The pesticide DDT wouldn’t be phased out for two more years. My parents grew up in Cleveland and saw the Cuyahoga River catch fire – more than once – and lived with the eutrophication of Lake Erie.
I also think about how they spent their professional lives as a mechanical engineer who developed air pollution control devices and a school nurse who contributed to public health. I think about how they supported their children’s educations and fostered a love of the natural world, including wildflower hikes at a state park this time of year.
In 2025, many of the environmental challenges of the 1970s have been solved, but the importance and complexity of environmental challenges has only grown. We see accelerated biodiversity loss, PFAS “forever chemicals” in our drinking water, and climate change. These challenges are not as visible as a burning river, but they are no less dire.
I draw hope and inspiration from my parents’ example. At WashU we are the educating the next generation of environmental problem-solvers. Through research our students, faculty, and staff are advancing knowledge to solve these challenges. And the beauty and wonder of the natural world still inspire.
We have opportunities to celebrate Earth Day 2025 on our campuses and in Forest Park. Please read on to learn more about those events as well as other exciting environmental programs that will round out the Spring Semester.
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Dan Giammar
Director, Center for the Environment
Walter E. Browne Professor of Environmental Engineering
Assistant Vice Provost
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WashU Earth Day Festival, April 17 |
WashU's Earth Day Festival is this week. Join the university community from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., April 17 in the McDonnell Pediatrics Lobby on the School of Medicine Campus.
This event will feature members of the WashU community sharing their sustainable and eco-inspired initiatives plus local and regional organizations showcasing their work.
The festival includes free bike tune-ups and the weekly Farmers Market.
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Recultivating Indigenous Sovereignty and Stewardship
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Rico Rose, Indigenous St. Louis working group organizer kicks off the day of panels - photo courtesy of Sharon Rhiney, Brown School Communications
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| Monie Horsechief owner of Horsechief Catering and Caleb Horsechief share about their work - photo courtesy of Sharon Rhiney, Brown School Communications
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Led by local Native community members, in collaboration with the center and 12 WashU partners, the 2025 Recultivating Indigenous Sovereignty Gathering Day of Panels brought together more than 100 campus and community members to advance Indigenous approaches to land and food systems. This day of panels, March 28, was part of a four-day gathering designed as a strategic continuation of the Divided Cities Initiative - Indigenous STL Working Group.
The multi-day gathering sought to strengthen relationships among Native seed keepers, tribal organizations, and Indigenous-led initiatives.
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Mariam Al-Mami, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Post Doctoral Fellow; Saundi Kloeckener, Native Women’s Care Circle; and Brandon Gibson, Tribal Alliance for Pollinators reflect on a audience question during the panel - photo courtesy of Alex Morales-Heil
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-American Culture Studies Program
-Center for the Environment
-Center for the Study of Race Ethnicity & Equity
-Environmental Studies Program
-Department of Anthropology
-Department of Landscape Architecture
| | -Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies
-Midwest Climate Collaborative
-Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum
-Missouri Botanical Gardens
-Office of Sustainability
-Tyson Research Center
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Celebrating Community Engaged Research |
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Join community-focused teams and regional partners to celebrate the William H. Danforth St. Louis Confluence Award, 5 - 7 p.m. on April 16 in the Clark-Fox Forum. Organized by the Confluence Collaborative for Community Engagement, the award is designed to encourage and reward community-engaged research by WashU faculty members that enhances WashU's impact and engagement with the St. Louis region.
The 2025 Confluence Award winner is Shannon Lenze and the EleVATE Collaborative for their project entitled, "Elevating Voices, Addressing Depression, Toxic Stress, and Equity in Group Care (EleVATE): A new model for prenatal care." Learn more and register.
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Reciprocity: On the Co-Evolution of Seeds, Plants, and People
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Two center scholars, Natalie Mueller and Meredith Malone, will present their work during Reciprocity: On the Co-Evolution of Seeds, Plants, and People at 5:30p on April 17 at the Kemper Art Musuem.
Mueller will explore relationships between humans and plants with a focus on Indigenous North American worldviews in which particular plants are conceived of as kin, with associated expectations of mutual care.
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Following the talk, Mueller and Malone will discuss how selected artworks in the exhibition Seeds: Containers of a World to Come illuminate this reciprocity.
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Distinguished Speaker: "The Challenge of Monitoring Ultrafine Airborne Particles"- with Susanne Hering
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Explore the challenges posed by ultrafine particles – smaller than 100 nm – and the evolution of technologies to detect and study them. Join the Department of Energy, Environmental, and Chemical Engineering as well as the center for this seminar featuring scientist and business leader Susanne Hering from 11 a.m. to noon on Friday, April 18 in Whitaker Hall room 100.
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Design for uncertainty: building resilience in a fear-driven world with Kotchakorn Voraakhom |
Thai landscape architect and global advocate for green infrastructure; Kotchakorn Voraakhom will give the presentation "Design for uncertainty: building resilience in a fear-driven world" 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. on Monday, April 21 in Weil Hall's Kuehner Court.
Join the center and the Sam Fox School community for this guest lecture focused on climate-resilient urban design with a global perspective.
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Earth’s rocks hold whiffs of air from billions of years ago
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Analysis suggests our planet’s oxygen levels rose surprisingly early, learn more.
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| Multimodal AI tool supports study of ecosystems |
TaxaBind combines multiple models to perform species classification, distribution mapping , and more, read more.
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New biosensor can detect airborne bird flu in under five minutes
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Researchers in Rajan Chakrabarty's Aerosol Interdisciplinary Research (AIR) Group create first-of-its-kind pathogen sensor, read more.
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| US science is under threat ― now scientists are fighting back
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Researchers are organizing protests and making their voices heard, learn more.
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WashU EnviroCorps members combine environmental stewardship and social impact, read more.
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| What makes a 1-in-1000-year storm, really?
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Thunderstorms that swept the central US in 2022 were unprecedented, but their extreme precipitation may not be that rare — especially with global warming, learn more.
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Upcoming WashU environmental events |
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The benefits of being a Center Scholar include the opportunity to mentor students in the summer undergraduate research program, connect with potential collaborators, and receive research support from the center.
Explore the program’s benefits and expectations.
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This program is open to WashU:
-Tenured and tenure-track faculty
-Research faculty
-Full-time teaching faculty
-Professors of practice
-Permanent research staff
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| Applicants should be engaged in research or teaching related to the Center's focal areas:
-Biodiversity
-Environmental justice
-Environmental solutions
-Planetary health
-Earth systems and climate change
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| | Washington University in St. Louis
One Brookings Dr.
MSC 1095-207-1160
St. Louis, MO 63130
environment@wustl.edu
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