Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the level of environmental literacy among business lecturers in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach: A survey, which involved a combination of newly developed items and items adopted from past studies, was used to collect data from 35 respondents (out of 70). Findings: The overall mean score for environmental literacy is 3.22 (out of 5), indicating that the respondents' level of literacy is slightly more than just fair knowledge. The most widely understood environmental literacy term is corporate social responsibility (CSR). The respondents were apparently aware of the recent mandatory disclosure requirement, i.e. to include the environmental information in companies' annual reports and the initiative moving towards "Green Malaysia". Practical implications: Universities in Malaysia could learn from environmental initiatives undertaken by universities in developed countries in terms of implementation, organizational policies and strategies. It is important for business lecturers to influence students to favourably perceive environmental issues as one of the core business activities, using a participative approach in teaching and learning. Originality/value: This paper adds to the limited literature of CSR education research, particularly in Malaysia, by filling the gap with the development of 13 items to determine the level of awareness toward environmental initiatives in Malaysia. (Contains 4 tables and 4 notes.)