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Discover CALS

See how our current work and research is bringing new thinking and new solutions to some of today's biggest challenges.

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About CALS

Cornell CALS is a premier institution of scientific learning, tackling the complex challenges of our time through purpose-driven science.

You want to change the world. So do we.

We are a community with a common goal: to leave the world better than we found it. Ambitious? Sure. But Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences has been changing the world for over a century and will continue to do so into the future.

Founded in agriculture and focused on life, we are pioneers who have shaped contemporary science and eagerly embraced international opportunity, while always serving the people in the state of New York.

Our purpose

This is the charge that motivates us: CALS tackles the challenges of our times through purpose-driven science that advances understanding and improves life.

CALS at a glance

14

Departments

8 departments shared with other Cornell colleges and schools

3

Schools

The Ashley School of Global Development & the Environment, the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics & Management and the School of Integrative Plant Science

$292M

Total research expenditures

FY 2024

4,020

Undergraduate students

942

Graduate students

350

Faculty

We seek answers in order to find the next questions.

Our mission

These are our objectives and how we accomplish them: As a premier institution of scientific learning, we connect the life, agricultural, environmental and social sciences to provide world-class education, spark unexpected discoveries and inspire pioneering solutions.

What we do

We are actively pursuing our mission to serve the public through our education, research and extension/outreach efforts. 

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people discussing plants

Teaching passion-driven minds

Learn about a CALS education
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Purpose-driven science in action

Explore our research
researchers in field

Sharing knowledge with the community

Learn about outreach and extension

Learn more about CALS

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Latest news, discoveries and breakthroughs

Explore the work we’re doing today and discover how it’s reshaping tomorrow.

Dairy cow in a field

News

‘Double the damage’: Warming climate reduces milk quality and quantity

Heat stress on dairy cows not only decreases the amount of milk produced but also the fat and protein content, doubling the economic losses.

  • Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management
  • Animals
  • Climate Change
Illustration of different people purchasing produce on a mobile phone

News

Online grocery shopping could bring more fresh produce to SNAP families

Grocery shopping online could help SNAP families access healthy foods, especially for those with young children or long commutes to grocery stores.

  • Communication
  • Food
  • Health + Nutrition
Yuqing Chen, a doctoral student and the study’s first author, searches for and counts baby oysters attached to shells in trays in Yonkers, New York.

News

Farmed oysters may boost New York’s dwindling wild populations

A new study offers genetic evidence and proof that farmed eastern oysters are adding to and breeding with wild eastern oyster populations in the western and central Long Island Sound.

  • Ashley School of Global Development and the Environment
  • Natural Resources and the Environment Section
  • Biodiversity
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