The Urban Environments Initiative (UEI) was launched in October 2019 as a collaborative venture between the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU), the Technische Universität München (TUM), the University of Cambridge, and New York University.

The initiative is based in Munich and is coordinated by Eveline Dürr (LMU) and Regine Keller (TUM) and
supported by administrative staff based at the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society. The UEI aims to bring together researchers working on urban environmental issues and related topics.