In response to global and local environmental changes and the increasing demands of promoting environmental literacy, awareness, knowledge, and actions among schools and citizens, the Graduate Institute of Environmental Education at NTNU was established in 1993 as the first graduate school for Environmental Education in Taiwan.

The Graduate Institute aims to achieve following objectives: 1. To facilitate academic research for achieving international goals of Environmental Education (EE) and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) at national and local levels. 2. To conduct studies on environmental interpretation, communication and education, as well as the relevant planning and development via formal and non-formal education systems at various nature or social arenas. 3. To provide training programs for teaching children and adults how to learn about and investigate their environment, and to make intelligent, informed decisions about how they can take care of it. 4. To develop teaching materials of environmental education for classrooms, communities, and in settings like nature centers, museums, parks, and various environmental learning sites.

GIEE offers doctoral and master degrees. The courses requirements include four categories: (1) environmental philosophies and research methods, (2) environmental core subjects – ecology, habitats, communities, and nature-society interactions, (3) the theories and development of environmental education, and (4) field practices of environmental education in both formal and non-formal settings. Internship and theses/dissertation writings are also required.