Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present a model for the analysis of business schools as creators, disseminators, and adopters of knowledge on environmental management. Design/methodology/approach: A review of the importance of higher education institutions for sustainability, and more specifically, about their relevance for the creation, diffusion, and adoption of knowledge on environmental management is performed. Guided by this reflection, a model for analyzing the contributions of business schools for expertise in environmental management is proposed. This model considers that activities such as teaching, research, extension community, and university management are elementary for these schools. For each addressed topic, empirical evidence on how some business schools and universities are addressing the environmental dimension in its activities is presented. Findings: The paper's discussions lead the reader to a draft of the evolutionary stages of business schools' contribution for environmental management knowledge, which can be useful for many stakeholders linked to a business school. Finally, the opportunity for a continuation of this research line and the limitations inherent in this proposal are highlighted. Originality/value: The literature on the subject can be considered meager and when existing tends to report experiences and challenges faced by business schools on the inclusion of environmental issues in their teaching activities, research, extension community, and university management, considering these activities almost always as watertight. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)