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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.

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

16

Departments

7 departments shared with other Cornell colleges and schools

2

Schools

The Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics & Management
and the School of Integrative Plant Science

$275M

Total research expenditures

FY 2023

4,020

Undergraduate students

950

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.

people discussing plants

Teaching passion-driven minds

Scientist and student with computers

Purpose-driven science in action

researchers in field

Sharing knowledge with the community

Latest news, discoveries and breakthroughs

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

Bobcat with a tag on its ear sits under a tree.

News

Avian influenza discovered in NYS bobcats

Researchers tracked 16 live bobcats in the state and found widespread exposure to avian flu, with evidence of bobcats surviving but also succumbing to the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain.

  • Natural Resources and the Environment
  • Animals
  • Disease
Close up of a strand of fluorescent blue DNA on a black background

News

A study from Cornell researchers could enable a quantum leap forward in identifying and deciphering cancer-driving genetic mutations, the first step in developing effective therapeutics.

  • Computational Biology
  • Genetics
  • Disease
Research associate Wayne Anderson loads bee samples into a liquid chromatography mass spectrometer for analysis in the lab of Scott McArt in Comstock Hall.

News

Cornell bee experts are analyzing samples of bees and related material to help identify the cause of unprecedented managed honeybee losses this winter.

  • Department of Entomology
  • Entomology
  • Pollinators