Advancing sustainability through innovation

We envision a future where sustainability innovations are woven into the fabric of everyday life; where sustainable technologies and systems are truly unified with conservation and biodiversity to build a healthier and greener world. With 800+ acres of stewarded lands on and around campus and vast visitorship, Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum’s aim is simple but profound: to transform University of Michigan’s leading edge sustainability research into tangible, immersive experiences to drive public understanding. 

Reconceiving the Arboretum and Gardens as campus’ “Living Land Labs,” MBGNA is already beginning to unify sustainability research across the natural environment and the built environment through emergent partnerships with Engineering, SEAS, Architecture, and LSA. Picture a public-facing research garden studying plant-insect interactions next to a 3-D printed pavilion made out of materials capturing carbon, next to transparent flexible solar cells adhered to the glass of our greenhouses, next to innovations in stormwater management protecting the Huron River but applicable worldwide. Every visit becomes an opportunity to be immersed within University of Michigan’s latest advances in sustainability in the natural environment and the built environment as a unified whole. 

While we enjoy dozens of academic partnerships with faculty, the Sustainability Campus concept - positioning the Gardens and Arb as key Living Land Labs - creates the infrastructure and resource base to systematically integrate Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum lands into UM’s sustainability initiatives and research. Your support in this endeavor is crucial. Join us in turning cutting-edge research into hands-on experiences and public impact.

Funding Goal: $2,500,000