The RISD Initiative on Sustainability and the Environment | RISE is in a state of formation and we welcome the involvement, contribution and participation of all members of the RISD community.  This site is being developed to share information on events and activities in the fields of sustainability and social and environmental justice.  There is an enormous amount of intellectual and creative work presently being done at RISD exploring how questions of sustainability and issues surrounding environmental justice impact on our curricula and practice. From urban ecology & eco-design to green architecture, from the rise of sustainable furniture, interior, landscape and industrial design to the growing interest in environmental sociology, environmental ethics and environmental cultural studies, RISD is clearly ‘going green’ in many different places and spaces.  Moreover, whether we consider concerns about the impact of climate change, local concerns about environmental injustices or exciting new discussions around the ‘Green Collar Economy’, new energy technologies or the need for a new post-financial crisis aesthetic, it seems evident that the environment is clearly going to play a major role in any serious and reflexive thought and pedagogy about the future.