Every year, the Nature Index measures and highlights institutions around the world that dominate high quality research in the area of natural sciences. The results are then released the following year, and the institutions are ranked based on their research performance.

The 2019 rankings were recently released, and in the category of Earth and environmental sciences, Colorado State University was recognized for its current standing on the list, as well as its growth since 2015, which both ranked high on the index.

Institutions that have had the strongest growth output since 2015 are categorized as 'rising stars.' These rankings are compiled based on the institution's share of articles that are published in 82 scientific journals, as selected by an independent panel of experts. The topics that CSU covered in these research papers included air quality, nanofiltration of industrial chemicals, renewable fuels and much more. Looking at the results for 2019, CSU was the 11th fastest riser in the the Earth and environmental sciences category. Furthermore, they were the only U.S. university to fall into the top 25.

CSU again shined in the rankings, coming in at #31 on the list of top institutions from around the world in Earth and environmental sciences. Impressively, CSU fell just behind Harvard.

The top contributors that helped CSU land so high on the Nature Index are the Department of Atmospheric Science, multiple teams in the Warner College of Natural Resources, and many other Earth and environmental science research efforts across the university.

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