Cornell seal
Back

Discover CALS

See how our current work and research is bringing new thinking and new solutions to some of today's biggest challenges.

A drone hovers above a cornfield. A red banner with the Cornell seal reads "To do the greatest good: The campaign for Cornell University."

Redesigning 21st Century Agri-Food Systems

Moonshot thinking

Nourishing people and planet as interconnected systems that create opportunities for digital agriculture, circularity, markets and economic development, and impactful local solutions from New York to the world. 

Resilient agri-food systems are essential to human existence. Global food networks must adapt to feed a population projected to reach 10 billion by 2050, while also contending with land, water and energy shortages caused by a warming planet. CALS seeks to develop novel ways to boost food production and nutrition and conserve resources—ensuring a nutritious, accessible, equitable, and sustainable food supply for all.

Research spotlight

Mario Herrero

Mario has found that plant-based alternatives to beef have the potential to help reduce carbon dioxide emissions, but their growth in popularity could disrupt the agricultural workforce, threatening more than 1.5 million industry jobs.

Learn more about Mario Herrero and his work.

Man sitting on a chair in front of a tree

Opportunities to support

Faculty, program support & research

CALS globally recognized faculty are the cornerstone of our reputation as a premier institution of scientific learning. Support CALS faculty and graduate students working on a multitude of issues around 21st century agri-food systems.

Student support & affordability

Scholarships enable Cornell to recruit and enroll the most promising scholars and garner a diverse student population. CALS supports students to ensure their success through programs such as peer mentoring, E3, CALS navigator, and experiential learning opportunities.

Flexible impact

Establishing a named Moonshot fund or supporting the established Redesigning 21st Century Agri-Food Systems Moonshot fund offers CALS leadership the greatest flexibility to take advantage of innovative and emerging opportunities, and will be used to bolster CALS' strengths in support of initiatives focused on 21st century agri-food systems.

Show your support

Make your gift to a moonshot
Three people wearing hairnets in a food science lab testing samples.

The impact of giving

Charles Midega (left) and Roy Odawa display the Kontiki kiln they modified to make biochar from human feces. Credit: Rebecca Nelson

News

Recycling excreta as fertilizer in Kenya transforms ‘disgusting’ to ‘beautiful’

Cornell researchers and Kenyan partners have developed a fertilizer made from human excreta. The product improves soil health and food production, while preventing pollution in informal settlements and the aquatic environment.

  • Ashley School of Global Development and the Environment
  • Global Development Section
  • Agriculture
Edward Harbes IV planting a new apple orchard in 2014.

News

Long Island farm leverages Cornell research to adapt, expand

Harbes Farm on Long Island relies on a mutually beneficial collaboration with Cornell researchers, a partnership that has made the family’s three farms key destinations for Long Island agritourism.

  • Cornell AgriTech
  • Cornell Cooperative Extension
  • Cornell Integrated Pest Management