Energy, Environment & Sustainability

Cornell is a global leader in sustainability and climate change research, teaching and engagement. Our campuses are living laboratories for developing, testing and implementing solutions that address these most challenging issues.


Study maps human uptake of microplastics across 109 countries

Southeast Asian countries top the global per capita list of dietary uptakes of microplastics, while China, Mongolia and the United Kingdom top the list of countries that breathe the most microplastics, according to a new study mapping microplastic uptake across 109 countries.

Tuskegee University joins Center for Research on Programmable Plant Systems (CROPPS)

Tuskegee University has become the latest partner of the Center for Research on Programmable Plant Systems (CROPPS), a Science and Technology Center funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation aimed at developing tools to communicate with plants and the associated organisms that make up their microbiomes.

Around Cornell

Art brings science to life along the Mohawk River

Through the capstone course Art and Science of the Mohawk River Watershed, a group of environment and sustainability majors studied the river through the lenses of art, science and culture, deepening their understanding of a complex natural system.

Students of different faiths unite to plant trees, give back

The inaugural Interfaith Service Day provided students with the opportunity to meet people from different backgrounds and faiths while planting trees at Groundswell Incubator Farm.

Dead & Company concert funds $800K for new climate solutions

One year since Dead & Company’s iconic show at Barton Hall, proceeds from the fundraiser have begun to flow to its climate-fighting recipients.

Beyond the ‘booms’: Book probes everyday disasters in South Baltimore, offers hope

In “Futures After Progress,” anthropologist Chloe Ahmann documents Curtis Bay’s industrial past and how it is grappling with pollution and the loss of steady work.

Students revive classic microchip fabrication with open-source tools

A unique project team enables Cornell undergraduates to use emerging open-source hardware to design, test and fabricate their own microchips – a complex, expensive process that is rarely available to students.

Cornell-USFQ bilateral exchange forges new partnership

A recently piloted bilateral exchange course is providing new engaged learning opportunities for students from Ithaca, New York to Quito, Ecuador. The partnership between Cornell University and the Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ), Cornell’s Global Hubs partner in Ecuador, is fusing collaboration in the classroom and in the field.

Around Cornell

Cornell Botanic Gardens’ pocket guide puts top sites in your palm

This new pocket-sized brochure gives you all you need to know to explore the gardens, natural areas, and gorges of Cornell Botanic Gardens.

Around Cornell