A study aimed to get to know the challenges of environmental education in a hospital, from the perspective of the individuals involved in its planning and execution. The research used a qualitative approach, case study type, using the workers of the Center for Environmental Education of a hospital group in the Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, as subjects. Data were collected, between August 2011 and January 2012, through documental research and interviews, and analyzed by content analysis. The challenges of environmental education include the lack of an institutional environmental policy that works as a financial, legal, human, and structural background for the development of actions focused on this topic. It was also observed that academic graduation does not consider environmental sustainability. It is clear that to work on these institutional challenges and overcome them during the development of environmental education is a prerogative for the construction of knowledge in environmental sustainability.
Environment; Nursing; Environmental education