A newly-announced capital initiative promises major renovations and new lab space for EAPS and our home in the iconic Green Building.

Dominating the MIT skyline for over fifty years, the Green Building has been a familiar landmark for generations of MIT students. It has also been a place of paradigm-shifting discoveries in the earth, atmospheric, and planetary sciences. This is where chaos theory and weather radar were born. This is where Earth’s climate system is modeled, where NASA missions are dreamed up, where ocean warming and carbon sequestration are investigated, where new understanding of earthquakes, tectonic motion, and the evolution of life on Earth are being developed, and where exoplanet discovery and research are being pioneered.

But the I.M.Pei-designed building which has housed EAPS vibrant scientific community since 1965 is showing its age, and EAPS is now suffering a serious lack of facilities for students and modern lab space. So we are delighted to announce MIT’s decision to move forward with a $60—70M capital plan to upgrade the Green Building’s infrastructure, and to provide EAPS with 20,000 square feet of new program space, subject to a successful $30M fundraising campaign.

“EAPS is seeking to build a transformative addition to the Green Building and to renovate labs in Building 4 for our scientists and students,” says EAPS Department Head Robert van der Hilst. “We are also eager to welcome the Environmental Solutions Initiative (ESI) into our building to promote collaboration on climate and earth systems education and research. We need to continue to attract and retain top faculty and students. This new program space for education, research, and collaboration will be a game-changer for
the department.”

Artist’s conception, not final design.

The Green Building addition and lab renovations are among the Institute’s top capital fundraising priorities in MIT’s Campaign for a Better World. MIT is committed to supporting at least 50% of the capital projects, including repairs to the Green Building and modifications to bring it up to code. EAPS needs to raise on the order of $30M to create a vibrant hub for the study of the earth and environment and provide state of the art wet labs in Building 4. The addition of a new earth and environment pavilion in the space that is currently the infamous “wind tunnel” beneath the Green Building will offer a new, welcoming entrance atrium showcasing EAPS research and providing access to EAPS and ESI headquarters. The pavilion will also host superior student study spaces, classrooms, and conference rooms, and provide improved access to the large lecture hall 54-100, which will also be refurbished and brought into the 21st century, greatly enhancing this crossroads at the heart of MIT’s buzzing campus.

MIT is now seeking philanthropic partners who share our commitment to earth, atmospheric, and planetary sciences and value the key role that MIT scientists can play in understanding the world around us, sharing that knowledge with the world, and acting upon it. The new pavilion and labs come with several very attractive naming opportunities. We are grateful for early gifts from some of our leading supporters: A. Neil Pappalardo and Neil Rasmussen and Anna Winter Rasmussen.

EAPS is eager to hear from other alumni/ae and friends who would like to help realize our vision and advance our research into the Earth, planets, climate, and the origins and evolution of life by supporting this new program space. To find out how your gift could make an impact on our research, or to inquire about naming opportunities, please contact:

Angela Ellis, EAPS Senior Development Officer
617-253-5796   |   aellis@mit.edu

New Neighbor. New Possibilities.

One of the exciting developments of the $60M+ capital improvement plan for EAPS and the Green Building is the opportunity to co-locate with MIT’s Environmental Solutions Initiative (ESI). Through an MIT-supported seed fund program, ESI solicits ideas from across the Institute for highly original interdisciplinary projects and unexpected collaborations, engaging wide participation by members of the MIT community to address the most significant interdisciplinary problems in our environment—spanning the physical and social sciences, engineering, and urban planning and policy.

ESI was founded in 2014 and charged by MIT President L. Rafael Reif with leading the Institute’s, “drive to increase fundamental knowledge and accelerate progress towards solutions around environment, climate, and human society.” As ESI’s inaugural director, EAPS Susan Solomon launched the seed grant program, laid the groundwork for the undergraduate Environment and Sustainability Minor, and led the search that culminated in the appointment of current ESI Director John E. Fernandez. Reporting directly to Vice President for Research Maria T. Zuber, ESI plays an active role in the implementation of MIT’s Plan for Climate Action and collaborates closely with partners in departments, labs, and centers across MIT, as well as with undergraduate and graduate student groups.

With climate science and earth systems as a shared priority, EAPS and ESI are eager to collaborate and enjoy the synergies that will arise from shared space.

Learn more about ESI: https://environmentalsolutions.mit.edu