Church Colleges and Theological Schools

• Theological Education to Meet the Environmental Challenge, an initiative to promote the integration of eco-justice into theological education at all levels, has identified “lead institutions” in the United States committed to educational programs that emphasize the eco-justice context and serve as models for achieving sustainable institutional operations that are ecologically sound, socially just, and humane.
• Colleges
  • Hendrix College (United Methodist) offers an Environmental Studies Program (PDF).
  • Warren Wilson College (Asheville, NC; covenant relationship to Presbyterian Church U.S.A.) operates an Environmental Leadership Center and conducts other campus environmental initiatives.
  • Courses on religion, ecology, and environmental ethics are offered at many other colleges. There are several online collections of sample syllabi for such courses.
• Theological Schools and Seminaries
  • o The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) offers an emphasis in environmental ministries and its Green Zone Committee promotes environmental awareness and responsibility at the seminary.
  • Theological Roundtable on Environmental Ethics and Spirituality (TREES) at the Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, California, works to raise awareness that “the environment is not just an issue among issues, but the context for all issues.”

• Courses, community programs and resources at several seminaries are detailed on the Web of Creation, a website based at LSTC, which has also collected syllabi for courses at seminaries and theological schools.

Campus Ministries

College and university students often become aware of and involved in environmental issues through courses or campus activities. Denominational and ecumenical campus ministries such as The Crossing (at the University of Wisconsin -- Madison) and Toledo Campus Ministry Fellowship (University of Toledo) provide opportunities for them to explore how their faith relates to their deepening concerns about ecological degradation.