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.


The 2030 Project offers fast grants to accelerate faculty-led climate solutions

New funding option for Cornell faculty reflects the urgency of climate research

Around Cornell

Five companies ‘graduate’ from Cornell incubators

As the pandemic pomp and COVID circumstances dissipate, Cornell’s McGovern Center and Praxis Center incubators graduated five startups, putting them on the road to success.

AI reveals scale of eelgrass vulnerability to warming, disease

A combination of ecological field methods and AI has helped an interdisciplinary research group detect eelgrass wasting disease from San Diego to southern Alaska, and determine that it’s caused by warmer-than-normal water temperatures.

Gomes receives ACM-AAAI Allen Newell Award

Carla P. Gomes, the Ronald and Antonia Nielsen Professor of Computing and Information Science, is the 2022 recipient of the ACM – AAAI Allen Newell Award, given in recognition of her foundational contributions to artificial intelligence (AI) and for founding and developing the field of computational sustainability.

Around Cornell

Study to focus on climate impact of NYS ponds, wetlands

Meredith Holgerson, assistant professor in ecology and evolutionary biology, is working with New York state to quantify the climate impact of ponds and wetlands, as part of the state’s efforts to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

Finger Lakes Land Trust, once a master’s project, conserves 28K acres

Alumnus Andy Zepp started the Finger Lakes Land Trust one night in a Fernow Hall lecture hall. Now executive director, he’s preserving the region’s iconic landscapes one acre at a time.

Amazon River freshwater fish show signs of overexploitation

As the cherished rainforest in South America’s Amazon River region continues to shrink, the river itself now presents evidence of other dangers: the overexploitation of freshwater fish.

Students help NYS town grow green economy

Master’s students are helping New Lebanon, New York expand its economy with green technology jobs, and drafting a blueprint for similar communities statewide.

From lighting to furnishings, MVR credited for inclusive design

A June 10 rededication and ribbon-cutting ceremony will celebrate the completion of renovations to Martha Van Rensselaer Hall, Cornell’s first facility recognized for inclusive design as part of its LEED Gold certification.