Cornell and global leaders will come together at Climate Week NYC Sept. 20-27 to discuss some of the world’s most pressing sustainability challenges, including harnessing AI’s power while mitigating its negative impacts, reimagining New York’s energy grid and building the technology and financing needed for energy transitions.
The Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability and the 2030 Project: A Cornell Climate Initiative are leading Cornell’s engagement at Climate Week NYC, which is held annually alongside the United Nations General Assembly. Over 30 faculty and staff delegates will present at more than 25 Cornell-hosted events.
“A university can publish the best science in the world and still not help the leader who has a critical decision to make on Monday. Showing up at Climate Week NYC is one of the ways we close that distance; sitting down with companies, investors and advocates, the same way we do with government agencies and fellow academics,” said Patrick Beary, the Bruce H. Bailey Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships at Cornell Atkinson. “By grounding these global problems in the best science available, we can put real tools, insights and resources in our partners’ hands for the challenges that matter to them, whether that’s food insecurity, water quality, or reducing climate risks.”
Provost Kavita Bala will be a featured panelist at the Sept. 21 Concordia Annual Summit, which brings together business, government, academic and nonprofit leaders to foster cooperation and dialogue. Cornell Atkinson is serving as a core programming partner for the 2026 Summit, where Bala will discuss teaching, learning and leading in the age of artificial intelligence.
“Research and higher education must evolve to meet the needs of future generations – and AI is an important part of that future,” said Bala, who launched the Cornell AI Initiative. “We see AI as both an opportunity and a responsibility. At Cornell we are advancing research to make AI systems more sustainable while exploring how AI can help accelerate solutions to climate and sustainability challenges.”
Cornellians and their partners will also discuss how to strengthen New York’s electrical grid amid the transition away from climate-warming fossil fuels.
A two-day Nuclear Symposium co-hosted by Cornell Atkinson and partners Nuclear New York, Generation Atomic and the student organization Cornell Nuclear is Clean Energy (Cornell NiCE) will center on bridging the gap between communities, governments, developers and utilities as state leaders seek to incorporate more nuclear capacity in New York’s energy grid. Gov. Kathy Hochul is seeking to build 5 new gigawatts of nuclear capacity in the state as public support for nuclear energy increases, driven by nuclear energy’s low carbon cost and its independence from other countries.
“Energy infrastructure is not built on spreadsheets, it’s built on partnerships and relationships within governments, communities, the regulatory space, and native groups,” said Isuru Seneviratne, co-founder of the non-profit Nuclear New York, who has partnered with Cornell Atkinson for years on how nuclear energy can power New York. “Cornell has been a great partner in building consensus and collaboration by advancing those science-based conversations about clean energy development.”
Cornellians and their partners will also address renewable energy battery storage – a critical need to advance clean energy – at a panel featuring Vibha Kalra, the Fred H. Rhodes Professor of Chemical Engineering in the Cornell Duffield College of Engineering, and Emily Bernhardt, the Francis J. DiSalvo Director of Cornell Atkinson. Speakers will focus on the full life cycle of battery storage, encompassing grid modernization, battery manufacturing, sourcing, recycling, policy and investment.
The Cornell SC Johnson College of Business will also host events focused on improving sustainability in travel, tourism and hospitality and on sustainable finance, in a program co-moderated by Andrew Karolyi, the Charles Field Knight Dean of the SC Johnson College.
Krisy Gashler is a writer for the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability.
