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.


Digitization program calls for applications

Making a difference one digital collection at a time, the library's grants program partners with faculty and Ph.D. students.

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Cornell group to comb data from Lake Superior sailing drones

Seafaring drones soon will allow Cornell scientists to examine the abundance and distribution of forage fish – like zooplankton and shrimp – that nourish species higher on the food chain.

Cornell-led team among DOE’s lithium-extraction finalists

A team led by Greeshma Gadikota from the College of Engineering was named a finalist for a national prize to domestically extract lithium – an essential ingredient for a greening world.

Coates wins 2022 Eni Award for environmental solutions in chemistry

An international honor recognizes Geoff Coates for innovations in sustainable plastics.

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Chasing carbon from trees to soils

Four undergraduates are working with a professor this summer to research how forests cycle and store carbon and nutrients in trees, microbes, and soil, and how these processes respond to changes in climate, air pollution and disturbances. 

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Harrison College Scholars explore politics, wellness, environment in summer work

From Ithaca to Hawaii to Ecuador, students in the Robert S. Harrison College Scholars Program in the College of Arts & Sciences took advantage of the summer as a time to explore their research interests.

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Conservation survey finds native NYS pollinators at risk

A New York state survey, supported by Cornell bee experts, finds that more than half of important native pollinators may be at risk of disappearing from the state – potentially threatening crops, wildflowers and insect diversity.

Research in Focus: Fishers and fish react to a changing environment

Kathryn Fiorella seeks to ensure the health of fisheries by taking into account the nutritional and livelihood needs of the people who depend on them.

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Undergrads win Northeastern Weed Science Society contest

Cornell’s undergraduate Weed Team won first place, while Megan Wittmeyer ’22 earned a top individual award, at the Northeastern Weed Science Society Collegiate Weed Science Contest.