We live in a time when no part of the natural environment is untouched by human activities. Great strides have been made in addressing many of the natural resources and environmental problems caused by human activities; however, population growth and rising standards of living continue to stress the natural environment and generate a spectrum of environmental problems that need to be solved.

Environmental engineers are called upon to understand, arrange and manipulate biological, chemical, ecological, economic, hydrological, physical and social processes to balance our material needs with our impacts on the environment. Such are the challenges of sustainability, while global climate makes these tasks all the more important.

At Cornell, environmental engineering majors pursue these challenges in a joint program of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and College of Engineering.

Environmental Engineering News

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News

Five early-career professors win NSF development awards

Researchers studying novel traits in organisms and the fundamental understanding of extreme weather are among the five Cornell assistant professors who've received National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Awards.

  • Biological and Environmental Engineering
  • Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
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News

Researchers have identified exactly what happens when a microbe receives an electron from a quantum dot: The charge can either follow a direct pathway or be transferred indirectly via the microbe’s shuttle molecules.

  • Biological and Environmental Engineering
  • Biology
  • Solar
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News

With high-speed cameras, researchers measured the physical forces involved in a handclap, with potential applications in bioacoustics and identification, whereby a handclap could be used to identify someone.

  • Biological and Environmental Engineering
  • Behavior