School of Environment and Natural Resources

The many faces of the School of Environment and Natural Resources invite you to discover our extension and outreach programs, our multiple research locations, the academic programs our students are engaged in, and the research being conducted by our faculty. Let this site be your guide in your discovery through this amazing school- it is our passion to help you find your fit at The Ohio State University's School of Environment and Natural Resources and make your SENR experience exceptional. En Español

News

Students learn what goes into planning for Ohio’s State Forests

What does it take to manage Ohio’s forests?

ENR 5340, Forest Ecosystem Management, opened its doors for a special lecture on management planning for Ohio's State Forests. The course is offered through the School of Environment and Natural Resources and taught by Dr. Roger Williams.

Who better to learn about real world forest management planning from than invited speakers Dan Balser, chief of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Forestry and Ben Kelley, land management administrator of ODNR Division of Forestry. With vast professional experience between them, the pair provided insights into how the Division of Forestry is organized, benefits of working with the Division and forest management planning protocols for the state forests.

Read more about the lecture >>
Four SENR faculty ranked among world’s most influential scientists

COLUMBUS, Ohio — What do soil health, food safety and honeybee survival have in common?

They’re just a few of the critical areas where faculty in The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) are driving global progress — and now, 23 of those researchers have been named among the most influential scientists in the world.

The 2025 World’s Top 2% Scientists list, compiled by Stanford University and Elsevier, ranks researchers whose work is among the most cited by peers worldwide. The recognition places CFAES faculty in an elite tier of global scholarship, where their discoveries are shaping the future of food, agriculture and environmental sustainability. See which faculty from SENR have been identified as the world's most impactful scientists >>
Open spaces in cities may be hotspots for coyote-human interaction

Study examines animal-person overlap based on location, time

Open semi-natural settings in urban areas – like parks and golf courses teeming with plants and small mammals – are possible hotspots for interaction between coyotes and humans, a new study suggests.

Researchers analyzed times and locations in Chicago when coyotes were on the move at the same time people were working, socializing or otherwise occupied outside the home.

The analysis showed that overlap of human and coyote activity would be far more probable in areas with a high proportion of open space and less likely to occur in predominantly paved areas.

“The overlap seems to be associated with environmental characteristics: It’s higher in areas with more open space and lower in areas with impervious surface cover,” said Emily Zepeda, first author of the study and a postdoctoral scholar in the School of Environment and Natural Resources at The Ohio State University. Read more about this research in Ohio State News >>