Join a Student Group
Help us grow our sustainable campus community. Join one of the groups below and meet others who share your passion for the environment.
The Associated Student Government Sustainability Committee (ASG SusCom) works to research, facilitate, and implement sustainability activities on campus. They aim to provide a unified, legitimate, and consistent voice from the students to the administration. They work closely with other campus groups to promote sustainability through academics, awareness campaigns, and tangible, impactful projects. Contact: asg-sustainability@u.northwestern.edu
Cats Who Compost (CWC) seeks to reduce food waste and promote environmentalism and sustainability through composting. CWC works with individual students, residential colleges, student groups, and academic departments to increase access to composting across campus. In addition to providing education and resources, CWC also hosts service and social opportunities to create a community committed to sustainable living. If you are interested in composting or working with Cats Who Compost, please reach out on Instagram (@catswhocompost) or through email at catswhocompost@u.northwestern.edu
ESW is a national nonprofit organization, with the Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ chapter run through the McCormick School of Engineering. The group channels the skills of engineers into sustainability projects on domestic and international levels through education, volunteer opportunities, and design projects. Contact: contact.eswnu@gmail.com
Environmental Engineering Undergraduate Society (EnvEUS) seeks to bring a community to the Environmental Engineering students, promoting collaboration, assisting in networking, and providing knowledge of potential career paths. EnvEUS also offers opportunities for students to use classroom skills in a practical setting through participation in competitions and projects focused on environmental sustainability. Contact: EnvEUS@u.northwestern.edu
Fossil Free Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ is a student organization that formed from a campaign of students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members calling on Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ University to divest from fossil fuels and invest in renewable energy. In addition to fighting for a sustainable endowment, the organization advocates for climate justice and environmental justice in Chicago, nationally, and internationally through consciousness-raising and activism. Contact: fossilfreenorthwestern@gmail.com
GREEN House is made of up roughly 40 on-campus residents interested in living sustainably. Their mission is to engender exploration, discovery, and critical thinking about environmental problems to inspire future Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ to act in ways that will protect and sustain our planet. (This opportunity is only open to undergraduate students living on-campus). Contact: nugreenhouse@gmail.com
In Our Nature aims to bring the environment to everyone as Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ's only environmental and science publication. Whether you’re a granola guru or a casual recycler, the stories, tips and entertainment will bring out your inner treehugger. Student contributors write, take photos, shoot video and more, all with the goal of showing readers why the environment is important for everyone. Contact: inournaturemag@gmail.com
By cultivating and leveraging Kellogg’s relationships, the Kellogg Energy & Sustainability Club (KESC) prepares students to become global Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ in energy and sustainability. KESC promotes and represents energy and sustainability within the Kellogg and Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ communities by providing critical and timely resources to support careers in energy and sustainability, bringing industry thought-Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ to speak, leading sustainability initiatives on campus, and building relationships with a broad range of energy companies to support on and off-campus recruiting.
Kellogg Net Impact Club’s mission is to inspire and prepare emerging Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ to use the power of business to create a more socially responsible and sustainable world.
CTC's mission is to promote informed discourse about energy issues, and to provide opportunities for collaboration both among Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ University students, as well as between students and external people and organizations. This is done through hosting talks and panel discussions, traveling to energy technology facilities, and organizing social events that encourage networking with other energy-related organizations. Contact: netg@u.northwestern.edu
NESC brings together undergraduates passionate about energy and sustainability. As a pre-professional organization, NESC offers members opportunities to connect with industry experts, participate in recruitment events, attend talks from leading professionals, and explore various industries through field trips. Our mission is to provide students with the tools, insights, and networks necessary to create meaningful change in the energy and sustainability fields. Students from all academic backgrounds are welcome to join. Contact: nuec@u.northwestern.edu
The Outdoors Club's mission is to enjoy the outdoors and get people in touch with nature. They organize trips all over the northern Midwest to kayak, hike, and climb while raising awareness of how to create a sustainable planet. Contact: nuoutdoorclub@gmail.com
NUsolar is a student-run team that designs, builds, and races completely solar-powered vehicles. Their goals are to promote a greater understanding of sustainable transportation technologies and to provide an opportunity for students to gain real-world engineering project experience. NUsolar has built six solar racers throughout it's history and travels across the nation each summer to compete with other university teams in the American Solar Challenge and Formula Sun Grand Prix solar car "rayces." Contact: team@nusolar.org
The Wildlife Club's purpose is to create an inclusive community on campus comprised of future scientists, environmental activists, animal lovers, and any student who has a passion for wildlife and is concerned with the global biodiversity crisis. The Wildlife Club's goals are to be an advocate on campus for wildlife conservation through activism, to provide career-building opportunities in the field of conservation, to engage with the Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ, Evanston, and Chicago communities through discussions and citizen science projects, and build relationships between Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ and Chicago-based zoological research institutions. Contact: wildlife@u.northwestern.edu
Plant Futures Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ is a non-profit-based club that aims to accelerate the transition to plant-based food systems by fostering ethical Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵhip, collaborative community, career development, sustainable education and events, and effective advocacy among students.
Plant-it Purple Graduate Gardens is a community garden located next to the courtyard behind the Technological Institute. The garden includes a vegetable garden, flower garden, and shade garden. Plant-it Purple's goal is to create a space where students, staff, and other members of the NU community can work together outside of classrooms and offices to cultivate and enjoy a living project.
The Prairie Cats Ecological Restoration Club is dedicated to taking tangible actions to improve the health of ecosystems around us by helping take care of natural areas on campus and in the community. Contact: prairiecatsnu@gmail.com
SEED is the largest and oldest student environmental group at Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ. They support progressive environmental movements at NU. Through event programming, service, and advocacy, SEED seeks to engage the entire Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ and Evanston communities to further sustainability. Contact: nuseed@gmail.com
Student Physicians for Social Responsibility (SPSR)
Student Physicians for Social Responsibility is dedicated towards supporting community service, advocacy, and education for environmental sustainability and anti-nuclear efforts in the context of improving health. They seek to fight for social justice by mitigating the effects of climate change, toxins, and other environmental threats to human health. SPSR promotes this by engaging students and community members through lunch talks and programs to improve sustainability practices at the Chicago Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ campus. They also collaborate with Physicians for Social Responsibility chapters at other Chicago medical schools. Contact: spsr.northwestern@gmail.com
We are a student-led chapter of Indivisible, a grassroots movement of thousands of groups with a mission to elect progressive Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ and rebuild American democracy. The goal of The Open Democracy Project is to provide students with action-oriented opportunities to develop organizing and Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵhip skills, and to meet and work with other students interested in addressing social issues like climate change and social justice. The Open Democracy Project is the organization supporting the first ever Participatory Budgeting process in Evanston. To join this campaign, please sign up at
Wild Roots is a student-directed garden which grows fresh produce for the Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ and Evanston communities using sustainable practices. Their goal is to serve the evolving educational and social needs of the Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ community by inspiring students to think critically about the food they eat and by starting conversations about sustainability, social justice, and our food system. During the Fall and Spring, they have weekly work days at the garden which involve planting, weeding, composting, and harvesting. Contact: nuwildroots@gmail.com