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 Cornell Duffield Engineering.

Environmental Engineering News

Sunny Jung (standing), professor of biological and environmental engineering in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, helps Alisha Stahl, a middle school teacher from Durgee Junior High School in Baldwinsville, New York, at a workshop for teachers on July 29.

News

NYS teachers take on microplastics with snail-inspired robot

Researchers and extension staff translated complex research into a hands-on curriculum – including the construction and deployment of floating robots – for New York State teachers and their students.

  • New York Sea Grant Institute
  • Biological and Environmental Engineering
McGraw

News

Doctoral students Divyanth Loganathan Girija and Sumit Sharma were selected for the 2026-2029 Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research Fellows Program.

  • Animal Science
  • Biological and Environmental Engineering
A team of Cornell students work on a prototype of their weed-killing robot

News

A team of Cornell students bested the competition with their invention: an autonomous robot that kills weeds with electricity.

  • Agriculture Sciences Major
  • Biological and Environmental Engineering
  • Agriculture