UNI Center for Energy and Environmental Education

04/24/2026

Audrey Tran Lam, Environmental Health Program Director at our Center, was recently featured on the At the Iowa Farm Table Podcast!

Check out the episode "Iowa, Farming and Cancer: What Do We Really Know?" discussing Iowa's cancer rates, farming practices, and the relationship between chemicals and cancer.

And a special song by the Weary Ramblers

04/06/2026

Our Center's Green Iowa AmeriCorps program was honored to receive the 2025 Public Sector Partner of the Year Award from the Black Hawk Soil and Water Conservation District at their annual awards banquet a few weeks back!

BHSWCD has been an incredible partner over the years, working with the Center and the Green Iowa program on a variety of projects and training. This is a great example of how organizations are working together to serve communities.

A special shout to Josh Balk who has been a tremendous collaborator and supporter of the GIA program over the years! Thank you!

03/27/2026

Our Neighborhood Trees program has some free baby fruit and nut trees available! 🌳

Our selection of bare root trees include Plum, Crabapple, Asian Pear, Chestnut, and Bur Oak trees. Bare root trees are very small, young trees, but will grow quickly with proper care and should produce fruits/nuts within a few years. Trees will be available in limited quantities on a first come first serve basis.

Our AmeriCorps members can help with planting, staking, and mulching trees and can show you how to care for them.

At this time trees are only available to residents of Black Hawk county and surrounding counties.

Complete this form to sign up: https://forms.gle/ouVfXg7bQP2e5JEv7

Have questions?
Call us at (319) 273-7599 or send us an email at [email protected]

03/25/2026

Gardening season is right around the corner and our Garden in Every Lot program is getting ready to start planting!

First-time gardeners are eligible to receive FREE garden installation services. Registration is open to residents of Black Hawk and surrounding counties and is on a first come first serve basis.

Visit our website at ceee.uni.edu/garden-in-every-lot to learn more and fill out our Garden Application form: https://forms.gle/gpEG1o8CRebZ17QDA

Have questions?
Give us a call at (319) 273-7599 or send us an email at [email protected]

02/06/2026

We are excited to announce the UNI Foundation, on behalf of our CEEE, has received a $5,000 grant from the Waterloo Community Foundation to support our Waterloo Neighborhood Tree Equity and Resilience Project. The project will will plant 200 culturally relevant fruit trees and 100 shade trees across underserved neighborhoods in Waterloo over the next year.

Deep gratitude to the Waterloo Community Foundation for selecting our project for support and continuously working with programs like ours to invest in the people and neighborhoods of Waterloo.

01/27/2026

We are excited to see the expansion of the Panther Pantry to support food security here on campus. Last summer our Center’s SPROUT Garden donated over a thousand pounds of produce to the pantry to created greater access to healthy, locally grown, produce for our students!

01/22/2026

Two of our Green Iowa AmeriCorps members, Hannah and Sabrina, spent the day at the Capitol showcasing our Center's work as part of our second annual Resilient Iowa Communities program. Thanks for the support Bob Kressig and talking with us about how we're making Iowa a more sustainable, resilient place to live!

12/02/2025

It’s Giving Tuesday, you can show your support for UNI’s Center for Energy & Environmental Education and make a lasting difference for UNI Students and our Iowa Communities. 💜💛 Your gift to the CEEE helps create resiliency for Iowa communities, supporting local food access, home energy efficiency, environmental and community health, and supporting students and community members to help them learn, serve, and grow. We so appreciate your support!

Give today through foundation.uni.edu/gt-ceee and be part of Giving Tuesday!

11/24/2025

This Giving Tuesday, we’re aiming to raise $30,000 and 150 donors to support the CEEE’s mission of empowering Iowans with the knowledge, experiences, tools, and inspiration needed to create a sustainable and desirable future for our communities. Every gift helps open doors for UNI students who are ready to make their mark in our communities!
💚 Give early through foundation.uni.edu/gt-ceee

UNI Foundation

11/20/2025

We are excited to announce that one of our very own have been selected as one of this year's 20 under 40 nominees by the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier along with the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa and Volunteer Center of Cedar Valley.

A big shout out to Kathryn Gilbery, our Center's Food Access Manager, for this much deserved recognition. Kathryn has been instrumental in so many projects, collaborations, and initiatives that bring the community together to create greater access to healthy, local food.

She has helped develop two major community gardens in Waterloo, manages our Veggie Voucher program, and is constantly building connections between organizations in both her professional and volunteer work. We know what an incredible job Kathryn does day in and day out and its wonderful that more folks get to celebrate her through this recognition!

Way to go Kathryn!!

10/24/2025

It was a beautiful fall morning to be out and about cleaning up the community! Our CEEE staff and AmeriCorps members spent some time picking up trash around Seerley Park this morning as part of the City of Cedar Falls Adopt A Spot Program.

You can learn more or even adopt a spot yourself on the city’s Adopt A Spot website: https://www.cedarfalls.com/1892/Adopt-A-Spot