Durham, NC - Students looking to apply to college or graduate school this fall have a new online tool to help them in their search: A free online directory of environmental information at nearly 2,000 U.S. colleges and universities.

The unique directory -- www.ourearth.org -- provides listings of environmental degree programs as well as environmental opportunities and organizations at campuses around the country.

"This enables students who have an interest in protecting the environment to discover environmental degrees and programs that they might not even know existed," said John Ullman, a Duke University graduate student and founder of the nonprofit group OurEarth.org, which created the website. "It also lets students view videos, share ideas and learn about successful initiatives at other colleges that they can then bring to their own campuses."

The directory was created by student volunteers at 40 campuses nationwide, including undergraduate and graduate students at Duke. It offers extensive information on undergraduate, master's and Ph.D. degree programs. The site includes links to campus carbon inventories and recycling opportunities, environmentally focused student clubs and organizations, and environmental opportunities in the local community.

"OurEarth has provided a valuable resource," said Bill Chameides, dean of the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke. "There has been such an explosion of environmental programs recently that it's become almost impossible to keep up. As a faculty member needing to advise students on opportunities around the country, I'll be visiting OurEarth's website on a regular basis."

OurEarth.org is a nonprofit organization, website and grassroots initiative founded in 2006. "Our goal is to transform the way the public finds environmental information," said Ullman, who is pursuing master's degrees at Duke's Nicholas School and Fuqua School of Business. "The new directory is the first of a series of innovative environmental tools we're developing."