At IU, as a student, you can work with world-class R1 faculty on research that tranforms their fields and the world.
Our most challenging problems can't be solved by any one discipline. The breadth of our environmental and sustainability faculty, programming, and research reflects IU's interdisciplinary approach. By design, our environmental- and sustainability-related degree programs let you follow your questions, wherever they lead.
Indiana University is home to some of the world's leading environmental researchers. Check out our research areas to learn more about them. For a full list of our faculty affiliates, please refer to our Faculty Affiliate Directory.
Research in this area examines how biological diversity is generated, maintained and altered, and how species, habitats and ecological processes can be protected or restored under rapid environmental change.
Jennifer Lau | Professor, Biology, College of Arts and Sciences
Studies the ecological and evolutionary responses of plants to human-driven change, including how species interactions and plant diversity influence restoration outcomes under warming and other environmental pressures.
Andre Franco | Assistant Professor, O'Neill School
Studies how climate change and other environmental pressures affect soil biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, including the roles of soil animals in carbon cycling, soil health and the resilience of forests, grasslands and agricultural systems.
Richard Phillips | Professor, Biology, College of Arts and Sciences
Examines how plants, soils and microbes regulate carbon and nutrient cycling, with particular attention to how tree species and belowground processes shape forest responses to drought, warming and elevated carbon dioxide.
Heather Reynolds | Professor, Biology, College of Arts and Sciences
Investigates plant-environment and plant-soil-microbe interactions, community diversity and restoration ecology, including native woodland and prairie restoration and the control of invasive species.
Michael Wasserman | Associate Professor, Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences
Combines primate ecology, environmental endocrinology and conservation biology to study how habitat fragmentation, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, artificial light and ecotourism affect primate health and behavior.
IU Research and Teaching Preserve
A network of protected natural areas that provides long-term field settings and diverse habitats for ecological research, teaching and stewardship.
Center for the Integrative Study of Animal Behavior
An interdisciplinary center supporting collaborative research and training on the mechanisms, development, evolution and ecological context of animal behavior.
Climate science at IU spans atmospheric dynamics and modeling, ecosystem-climate feedbacks, paleoclimate records and projections of weather and climate extremes.
Ben Kravitz | Associate Professor, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences
Uses climate models to study radiative forcing and feedbacks, solar climate intervention, high-latitude teleconnections and uncertainty in climate-sensitive systems such as wind energy.
Justin Maxwell | Professor, Geography, College of Arts and Sciences
Uses tree rings and other records to reconstruct past climate, explain forest disturbance and improve understanding of drought and other climate extremes across long time scales.
Kimberly Novick | Professor, Director of ESSI, and Paul H. O'Neill Chair, O'Neill School
Studies land-atmosphere exchange, ecosystem carbon and water cycling, and how forests and other ecosystems respond to climate variability, with applications to nature-based climate solutions.
Shahzeen Attari | Professor, O’Neill School
Combines psychology and environmental science to examine how people understand climate change, energy and resource use, and how perceptions, motivations, identities and biases influence support for climate action and low-carbon technologies.
Paul Staten | Associate Professor, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences
Researches atmospheric dynamics, climate-cloud interactions, remote sensing and the links between climate change and extreme weather.
Environmental Resilience Institute
Connects climate research with communities, governments and organizations working to prepare for environmental change and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.
This area connects farming, food access and supply chains with ecology, rural livelihoods, equity, culture and the resilience of communities.
Eduardo S. Brondizio | Distinguished Professor, Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences; Director, CASEL
Studies land-use change, livelihoods, institutions and collective action in social-ecological systems, especially the relationships among people, forests, markets and development.
James Farmer | Associate Professor, O'Neill School
Examines the viability of small and midsize farms, sustainable agriculture, rural communities, farmer adaptation, land access and intergenerational farm transfer.
Sarah Osterhoudt | Associate Professor, Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences
Uses environmental anthropology, agrarian studies and political ecology to understand smallholder agriculture, agroecology, trade, development and culturally meaningful landscapes.
Jennifer Meta Robinson | Professor of Practice, Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences
Works at the intersection of food, expressive culture and sustainability, with a strong emphasis on teaching and collaborative, place-based food-systems learning.
Annie Shattuck | Associate Professor, Geography, College of Arts and Sciences
Researches agrarian change, human-environment geography and sustainable food systems, including the political and economic forces that shape farming and food access.
IU Bloomington's interdisciplinary hub for research, curriculum, events and community partnerships related to food, farming and agrarian systems.
Food and Agrarian Systems Program at the Ostrom Workshop
Brings institutional analysis and commons scholarship to questions of food governance, agricultural livelihoods and the stewardship of shared resources.
Research in environmental policy and ethics asks how laws, institutions, values and public choices shape who benefits from environmental protection, who bears environmental harms and how decisions should be made.
Shahzeen Attari | Professor, O'Neill School
Studies how people understand and make decisions about resource use, climate change and conservation, including the behavioral, distributive and ethical dimensions of personal and collective action.
Robert L. Fischman | George P. Smith II Distinguished Professor of Law; Adjunct Professor, O'Neill School
Researches environmental and natural-resources law, public lands, wildlife and water law, and how conservation mandates can be implemented through adaptive, evidence-based governance.
David Konisky | Associate Dean for Research and Lynton K. Caldwell Professor, O'Neill School
Examines environmental and energy policy, regulation, federalism, public opinion and environmental justice, including unequal exposure to pollution and unequal access to energy benefits.
Rebecca Lave | Professor, Geography, College of Arts and Sciences
Studies stream restoration, environmental expertise, regulation and the political economy of science, showing how knowledge and power shape environmental interventions.
Diana Ojeda | Professor, Geography and International Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
Uses political ecology to investigate agrarian transformation, tourism, violence, commons governance and environmental justice, especially in Latin America.
An interdisciplinary research lab focused on the distribution of energy benefits and burdens, energy insecurity and the justice implications of energy transitions.
A public-interest law center affiliated with IU that combines legal practice, research and student training to advance conservation.
Environment and Natural Resource Governance Program, Ostrom Workshop
Supports comparative research on institutions, collective action and the governance of forests, water, fisheries, climate and other shared environmental resources.
This area examines how firms, governments and communities organize for sustainability by designing policy instruments, governing shared resources, managing energy and supply chains and building accountable institutions.
Juan Bu | Associate Professor, International Business and Strategy, Kelley School of Business
Studies global strategy, innovation and sustainability, including how firms respond to climate change and environmental pressures across emerging and established markets.
Sarah Mincey | Clinical Associate Professor, O'Neill School; Managing Director, Environmental Resilience Institute
Researches natural-resource management and policy, social-ecological systems, urban and community forestry, and the institutions that enable collective environmental action.
Kenneth R. Richards | Professor, O'Neill School
Works on environmental economics and the design of policy instruments such as taxes, offsets, tradable allowances, subsidies, information programs and regulation for public- and private-sector use.
Rebecca Lave | Professor, Geography, College of Arts and Sciences
Studies stream restoration, environmental expertise, regulation and the political economy of science, showing how knowledge and power shape environmental interventions.
Jessica Steinberg | Associate Professor, International Studies; Co-Executive Director, Ostrom Workshop
Studies the political economy of development and natural-resource governance, with a focus on institutions, conflict and cooperation around shared resources.
Owen Wu | Associate Professor, Operations and Supply Chain Management, Kelley School of Business
Examines environmental sustainability in energy markets and supply chains, including energy and water demand, transparency, sustainable business models and the effects of public policy.
Environment and Natural Resource Governance Program, Ostrom Workshop
Applies institutional analysis to sustainability problems that require coordination across governments, markets and communities.
Metropolitan Governance and Management Transitions Laboratory
Studies how local governments and metropolitan institutions adapt policy, management and public services in response to environmental and social change.
IU researchers study water from aquifers and watersheds to lakes and global river systems, integrating hydrology, remote sensing, biogeochemistry and climate impacts.
Rafael M. Almeida | Assistant Professor, O'Neill School
Studies energy-water-food systems, freshwater biogeochemistry, water quality and quantity, and how dams and other hydrologic changes affect ecosystems and biodiversity.
Mallory Barnes | Assistant Professor, O'Neill School
Uses ecohydrology, remote sensing and ecosystem flux measurements to understand how vegetation and water cycles respond to drought and other dimensions of global change.
Grace Carlson | Assistant Professor, Geography, College of Arts and Sciences
Studies groundwater hydrology and changes in water storage using remote sensing and modeling, with applications to drought monitoring and water-related hazards.
Darren L. Ficklin | Professor and Chair, Geography, College of Arts and Sciences
Models watersheds, surface water, groundwater and water quality to understand how climate change alters the hydrologic cycle, drought and aquatic ecosystems.
Zhiying Li | Assistant Professor and Fischer Faculty Fellow, O'Neill School
Researches hydroclimatology, hydrologic extremes and changing water availability using process-based models, machine learning, GIS and remote sensing.
Conducts long-term and applied research on Indiana lakes, lake ecosystems, water quality and management.
Partners with agencies and communities to monitor lakes, analyze water quality and make accessible information available for lake management.
Ecosystem Change & Sustainability
Studies the environmental consequences of energy and infrastructure development, especially interactions among rivers, reservoirs, greenhouse gases, biodiversity and human needs.
Environmental arts and humanities research explores how people have represented, valued and transformed the natural world, and how history, literature and creative practice can reshape environmental understanding.
Shannon Gayk | Professor, English, College of Arts and Sciences
Works in the environmental humanities, studying medieval representations of floods, fire, plague, apocalypse and ecological flourishing and connecting them to contemporary environmental questions.
Katina Bitsicas | Associate Professor, EcoMedia Lab, The Media School
Creates interdisciplinary BioArt and EcoArt using microscopy, photography, projection mapping, installation and performance to explore natural systems, ecological cycles and the relationships among environment, memory, grief and the human body.
Stephen Macekura | Associate Professor, International Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
Studies global environmental history and the history of sustainable development, including changing ideas about economic growth, progress and how societies measure well-being.
Rowland Ricketts | Provost Professor, Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design
Uses natural dyes and historical processes, especially indigo cultivation and dyeing, to create farm-to-gallery work that makes relationships among land, labor, material and time visible.
A portfolio of collaborative inquiry and creative practice, including work on walking, performance, place, environmental memory and more-than-human worlds.
College Arts and Humanities Institute
Supports cross-disciplinary arts and humanities research, fellowships and public programming, including work in the environmental humanities.
This area traces pollutants from chemical formation and environmental transport to biological exposure, toxic effects and risk, linking atmospheric chemistry, analytical chemistry, genomics and public health.
Barbara Hocevar | Associate Professor, Environmental and Occupational Health, School of Public Health-Bloomington
Studies PFAS toxicology, chemical carcinogenesis and cancer biology, with emphasis on how environmental exposures and genetic susceptibility interact in disease development.
Joseph Shaw | Professor and Paul H. O'Neill Chair, O'Neill School
Combines environmental toxicology, genomics and comparative physiology to identify biological pathways from chemical exposure to adverse outcomes and develop more predictive, non-animal testing approaches.
Philip S. Stevens | Rudy Professor and Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, O'Neill School; Adjunct Professor, Chemistry
Studies atmospheric reaction mechanisms that influence indoor and regional air quality and climate, especially the oxidation of volatile organic compounds and the chemistry of atmospheric radicals.
Marta Venier | Associate Professor, O'Neill School
Investigates the fate and transport of persistent organic pollutants, including PFAS, PCBs, pesticides and flame retardants, using mass spectrometry in indoor and outdoor environments and consumer products.
Atmospheric and Environmental Chemistry Labs
A cluster of O'Neill laboratories studying atmospheric reactions, pollutant transport and environmental exposures, including the Stevens and Venier groups.
