The Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability will celebrate its 15th anniversary with a daylong program on April 10, highlighting the center’s varied research and success in developing partnerships that benefit people and the planet.

The daytime program, which will run online from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., will include 20 Cornell scientists and external collaborators discussing their transformative research on topics such as harnessing deep geothermal energy; improving sustainability in the dairy industry; and developing next-generation batteries for renewable energy technologies.

The daytime program will also include a discussion on the value of visionary partnerships between David Lodge, the Francis J. DiSalvo Director of Cornell Atkinson, and Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). Cornell Atkinson and EDF have collaborated for more than 10 years, supporting Cornell students working as EDF summer interns; postdoctoral fellows who are co-advised by Cornell faculty and EDF scientists; and more than 20 collaborative Innovation for Impact grant awards.

Members of the public are invited to participate in a livestream of the event; register here.

The April 10 evening keynote panel on the future of U.S. climate policy will be moderated by Anne Thompson, NBC News’ chief environmental affairs correspondent and the spring 2025 Zubrow Distinguished Visiting Journalist (DVJ) in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S). The event is co-sponsored by A&S as part of the DVJ program.

Thompson will be joined by Gina McCarthy, senior adviser at Bloomberg Philanthropies, managing co-chair of the America Is All In coalition and the first White House national climate adviser, under President Joe Biden; and Mary Nichols, distinguished counsel at UCLA Law, former chair of the California Air Resources Board and senior staff attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Members of the public are invited to join the discussion online, or in person in G-01 Gates Hall, from 7:30-9 p.m. Livestream registration is open.

Cornell Atkinson was founded thanks to the generosity of David ’60 and Patricia Atkinson, whose $80 million gift in 2010 endowed the center as an interdisciplinary hub for sustainability research and collaboration within the university and among global partners. The center now supports the work of 700 faculty fellows and has awarded 1,200 grants totaling $45 million. Many other donors have joined the Atkinsons’ cause, including alumni, global philanthropists – and even Dead & Company.

“Fifteen years ago, the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability was founded with a bold vision: to connect Cornell’s world-class research with real-world action,” Lodge said. “Mission-driven partnerships with corporations, NGOs and government agencies have turned research into action, while continued generosity from donors gives us the flexibility to tackle both longstanding and emerging societal challenges in new ways.”

Krisy Gashler is a freelance writer for Cornell Atkinson.