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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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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

View more

Latest news, discoveries and breakthroughs

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

Hand watering a small sprout in the ground

News

Soil carbon effectively measured by new, efficient AI model

A new model offers a proof-of-principle for how AI might be used to shed light on obscure biological processes.

  • School of Integrative Plant Science
  • Soil and Crop Sciences Section
  • Climate Change
Illustration of a plate of food on a table with an image of an intestine overlapping

News

Will dietary fiber help digestion? It might depend on your gut bacteria

People may not only need specific species of gut bacteria but also the right strains of those bacteria to benefit from dietary fiber.

  • Nutritional Sciences
  • Food
  • Health + Nutrition
Macaw flying in an open landscape

News

Rubber tree agroforestry supports birds, biodiversity in the Colombian Amazon

A doctoral candidate and Semlitz Sustainability Fellow and his Colombian partners seek to protect birds and biodiversity in the Amazon via sustainable rubber tree agroforestry.

  • Cornell Atkinson
  • Ashley School of Global Development and the Environment
  • Natural Resources and the Environment Section
View more news & stories