Cornell President David Skorton will take part in the inaugural meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI U), hosted by former U.S. President Bill Clinton, March 14-16 at Tulane University in New Orleans, where college students, fellow university officials and global leaders will address how to change the world.

Clinton founded CGI in 2005 to turn ideas into action by bringing attention to the world's most pressing issues and fostering a shared responsibility to address them.

"CGI does not give grants; it matches people with ideas and those who have the means to see them through," Clinton has said. "Today's generation of young people holds more power than any generation before them to make a positive impact on the world."

CGI U is a project to tackle global problems with innovative solutions. The CGI U meeting requires commitments from all participants to provide real action with results.

Skorton will take part in the opening March 15 plenary session, "Working Together: Students and Universities Take the Lead on Global Challenges" -- a forward-looking discussion on how students, graduates and educational institutions can together transform global challenges into opportunities to create jobs, save lives and create a world of shared benefits, according to the CGI U program.

Working sessions will follow on CGI U's four main focus areas -- energy and climate change, global health, human rights and peace, and alleviation of poverty.

Also scheduled are a special session on "Rebuilding a Sustainable New Orleans," a closing plenary with remarks by Clinton, and a "Giving Back to New Orleans" service project on March 16.

Other participants in the weekend meeting will include actor Brad Pitt, writer Dave Eggers, political strategist James Carville and fashion model (and presidential niece) Lauren Bush.

CGI is a nonpartisan initiative of the William J. Clinton Foundation. For more information, visit http://www.clintonglobalinitiative.org.

On March 19, Skorton will take part in a media roundtable at the Penn Club of New York, where he and several other university presidents will discuss science, research and higher education.