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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

$293M

Total research expenditures

FY 2025

4,180

Undergraduate students

942

Graduate students

306

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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Teaching passion-driven minds

Learn about a CALS education
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Purpose-driven science in action

Explore our research
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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.

a woman kneels in front of a row of cows and holds a handful of feed

Field Note

The right nutrition can boost dairy cow productivity, farm sustainability
Ananda Portela Fontoura PhD’22 is a postdoctoral associate working in the lab of Michael Van Amburgh , professor of dairy nutrition. Ananda’s research focuses on maintaining or enhancing dairy cow performance through optimizing nutrient use...
  • Dairy
  • Animal Science
  • Animals
Red-faced Cormorant

News

Birds are among Earth’s most important nutrient-movers

Birds play an outsized, underappreciated role in shaping Earth’s chemistry, distributing nutrients across oceans, forests and coral reefs and sustaining life far beyond the nest, according to a new scientific review.

  • Animals
  • Natural Resources and the Environment Section
  • Ashley School of Global Development and the Environment
A solar farm in Lansing, New York.

News

Sheep grazing in solar fields offers farmers economic, ecological gains

As solar grazing expands across the country, new research helps sheep farmers increase profitability and sheds light on the how the number of sheep in solar array fields interacts with beneficial insects.

  • Natural Resources and the Environment Section
  • Agriculture
  • Solar
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