Cornell’s $55 Million Gift Sparks a New Global Vision for Development and the Environment
Right now, there’s a major development coming out of Cornell University, and it’s one that’s turning a lot of heads in higher education and global research circles. A massive $55 million gift has been received by Cornell’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and it’s being used to establish something entirely new: the Cornell CALS Ashley School of Global Development and the Environment.
This historic donation was made by Stephen B. Ashley, a Cornell alumnus and former university trustee who earned his undergraduate degree in 1962 and his MBA in 1964. Over the years, Cornell’s influence on his personal and professional life has been openly acknowledged, and this gift is being seen as both deeply personal and strategically forward-looking. In fact, it’s been described as the largest gift in the history of Cornell CALS.
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What’s especially significant is how this new school is being structured. Two existing departments—Global Development and Natural Resources and the Environment—are being combined under one umbrella. By doing this, expertise across agricultural sciences, environmental studies, economics, social sciences, and life sciences is being brought together in a more intentional and collaborative way. The goal, as university leaders have explained, is to break down traditional academic silos and encourage solutions that actually work in the real world.
According to Cornell officials, the new school is designed to focus on some of the biggest challenges facing society today. Issues like climate change, food and energy security, poverty, biodiversity loss, migration, and environmental degradation are expected to be tackled through a transdisciplinary approach. It’s been emphasized that these problems can’t be solved by one field alone, and that mindset is shaping how the Ashley School will operate.
Students currently enrolled in related programs won’t see any disruption. Existing degrees, minors, and graduate programs will continue as they are, and no immediate changes to majors have been announced. However, plans are already in place to recruit at least 10 new faculty members, including economists who will bridge development and environmental research in collaboration with Cornell’s business school.
Leadership at Cornell has praised the gift as visionary and timely, noting that it strengthens the university’s land-grant mission to serve both local communities and the global population. From experiential learning to cutting-edge research, the Ashley School is being positioned as a hub where academic knowledge meets practical impact.
In simple terms, this $55 million gift isn’t just creating a new school—it’s setting the stage for how future leaders, researchers, and policymakers might be trained to care for both people and the planet in a more connected, sustainable way.
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