Our Work
From the coastal effects of sea-level rise to catastrophic droughts, urban and rural dwellers alike face increasing risks from climate change. While urban systems and infrastructure must be resilient to rising seas and increasing climate extremes, improved financial security for developing world farmers is essential to reducing climate-induced human migration into cities that would overwhelm urban environments. Cornell Atkinson is innovating technology, financial instruments, and policy to reduce greenhouse gas concentrations and mitigate the impact of droughts, floods, storms, and wildfires while adapting agriculture and the built environment for a low-carbon future.
Climate News
The 2030 Project: A Cornell Climate Initiative which will marshal the expertise of hundreds of faculty members, debuted May 11 at the Cornell Future Forum in San Francisco – the first in-person event in California since the start of the pandemic.
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Projects
The 2030 Project: A Climate Initiative will mobilize world-class faculty to develop and accelerate tangible solutions to the climate challenge. From transforming food and energy systems and reducing greenhouse emissions to advancing environmental justice and shaping policy, Cornell will use practical science to help save the planet before it’s too late. The initiative is housed at Cornell Atkinson under the direction of executive director Ben Furnas.
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To slow and stop the global loss of biodiversity, we must fundamentally rethink our relationship with nature and transform our economic models and market systems. Research in Conservation Finance offers new, long-term, diversified sources of revenue supporting biodiversity conservation.
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Accelerating adoption of regenerative agriculture practices across the Great Lakes basin by developing transition loan products and services to facilitate the transition from conventional to regenerative agriculture.
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The Cornell Climate Engineering group will model adding reflective aerosols into the stratosphere, which may deflect enough sunbeams to reduce Earth's temperature and limit climate change.
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Cornell Atkinson serves as a partner in The Coalition for Private Investment in Conservation, a global multi-stakeholder initiative focused on enabling conditions that support a material increase in private, return-seeking investment in conservation.
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FAST-GHG is a fertilizer and soil tool designed to quantify greenhouse gas emissions in crop production. Developed by Cornell faculty in partnership with NGOs, the tool was included in Walmart’s Project Gigaton.
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Climate Change Is Harming the Planet Faster Than We Can Adapt, U.N. Warns. Cornell Atkinson Fellow Rachel Bezner Kerr served as author on new report published on February 28, 2022.
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According to new research, family values are a much stronger predictor of climate opinions and policy support than political views for U.S. Latinos.
Read MoreFaculty Fellow Highlight
From desert dust to volcanic ash to microplastics, Fellow Natalie Mahowald (ENG) is exploring how biogeochemistry can reduce climate risks, from wherever feedbacks in our earth system emerge.
Get to Know This Fellow
Cornell Atkinson postdoctoral fellows help lead the future of sustainability through innovative, interdisciplinary research collaborations.
Maia Dedrick
Education: PhD ’19, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Cornell Adviser: John Zinda (CALS) External Partner: U Yits Ka'an (Mexico)
Stephen Jane
Education: PhD ’20, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Cornell Adviser: Peter McIntyre (CALS/Natural Resources & the Environment) External Partner: United States Geological Survey (USGS)
Cindy Kaiying Lin
Education: PhD ’21, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Cornell Advisers: Steven J. Jackson (CIS/Information Science) External Partner: Radiant Earth Foundation
Juliet Lu
Education: PhD ’20, University of California, Berkeley Cornell Adviser: Philip McMichael (CALS/Global Development) External Partner: Mekong Region Land Governance Project
Investigators: Rachel Bezner Kerr, Katja Poveda
Investigators: Taryn Bauerle, Todd Walter, Joe Guinness
Investigators: Christopher Csikszentmihalyi, Phoebe Sengers, Steven Jackson
Investigators: Greeshma Gadikota, Todd Cowen, Johannes Lehmann, F. Garrett Boudinot, Benjamin Houlton
Investigators: Felix Heisel, Kathie Hodge, Rebecca Nelson, Anil Netravali, Prabhu Pingali, Lori Huberman, Marta Wisniewska
Cornell Investigators: Ariel Ortiz-Bobea, Dyson School
EDF Investigators: Maggie Monast, Director of Working Lands; Vincent Gauthier; Dave McLaughlin, Economist
Other: Jenny Ifft, Kansas State University
Cornell Investigators: Todd Gerarden, Dyson School
EDF Investigators: Dave McLaughlin, Economist
Cornell Investigator: Gary Evans, Design and Environmental Analysis
EDF Investigator: Elizabeth Brandt Regional Field Manager, Mom’s Clean Air Force; Rainer Romero