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Students sketch Ossining’s budding waterfront ideas
In this artistic rendering by Lingyi Xu, MLA ’20, she reimagines the space under her proposed elevated rail near the Ossining waterfront. It provides a shelter for festivals and a farmers’ market, and protects transportation systems and residential areas from a rising Hudson River.
March 24, 2020 — The banks of the Hudson River shore at Ossining, New York, may seem tranquil now, but the Westchester County town – and other villages along the river – face a watery future: Due to projected climate change effects, the Hudson is rising.
Cornell graduate students studying landscape architecture examined Ossining last fall, and in mid-December presented the town and village with ideas for climate-change adaptation. The student projects included marrying the built environment with marshy wetlands, plugging in more recreation, and working in tandem with natural and environmental systems.
COVID-19 resources for community-engaged learning
As Cornell faculty, staff and students navigate the move to online instruction — and all that comes with it — we know that community-engaged learning presents unique challenges.
The Office of Engagement Initiatives is sharing relevant resources, as well as information for current grantees and program participants at engaged.cornell.edu/resources/covid19.
We’ll update this page as new resources and information are available.
Getting climate smart in Armenia
March 10, 2020 — Generations of Armenian apricot growers have relied on snowmelt from the Caucasus mountains to irrigate their small family orchards that dot the country’s fertile valleys. But now, as climate change disrupts weather patterns and the snowpack retreats, farmer livelihoods are becoming imperiled at an unprecedented rate.
“Armenia is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change,” said Allison M. Chatrchyan, senior research associate in the Department of Global Development. “Temperatures there are rising more than the global average, drought is becoming more widespread and freeze risk is intensifying. Climate change is hitting farmers hard, and it’s affecting rural societies in untold ways.”
Yunyun Wang ’20 awarded national fellowship
Yunyun Wang
March 10, 2020 — Yunyun Wang ’20, a double major in the College of Arts and Sciences and in the College of Engineering, has been named a Newman Civic Fellow by Campus Compact, a national coalition of colleges and universities committed to the public purposes of higher education.
The Newman Civic Fellowship, in its 10th year, honors students who engage with others to create long-term social change, take action to address issues of inequality and demonstrate a potential for civic engagement.
Milstein students participate in critical reflection workshops
March 5, 2020 — Milstein students spent two weeks in February participating in critical reflection and Intergroup Dialogue Project workshops as part of their Collab Course. In these workshops, students reflect on their ongoing work with community partners and learn about mentorship opportunities within the program and on campus. The workshops are helping students not only prepare for their community-engaged project work in Ithaca, but also for this summer, when they will live, study and work with community partners at Cornell Tech on Roosevelt Island for six weeks.
Richard Kiely, senior fellow of the Office of Engagement Initiatives, led the critical reflection workshop on Feb. 5. Students discussed their experiences with community learning and analyzed important aspects of working with community partners, such as understanding their needs and tailoring a vision to address those needs.
Read the full article on the College of Arts and Sciences website.