Cornell University has named Emily Bernhardt as the next director of the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability.
Bernhardt will begin the role Sept. 1, succeeding current director David Lodge, who will retire in May after 10 years.
Bernhardt is a freshwater ecologist and biogeochemist and currently serves as a professor at Duke University.
She will become the third director in the center’s history and will oversee nearly 800 faculty fellows, 140 active grants and partnerships with external organizations.
“Emily Bernhardt will bring strong intellectual leadership to the Cornell Atkinson Center at the perfect time, translating Cornell’s academic excellence into real-world impact,” said Provost Kavita Bala.
Bernhardt earned her doctorate at Cornell and will hold an academic appointment in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
“I’m impressed that Cornell Atkinson leadership and the Atkinson family have focused on fueling great ideas that come from the faculty, rather than imposing their own views of what they think is most important,” Bernhardt said.
As director, she plans to expand collaboration across disciplines, including fields not traditionally tied to environmental sustainability.
“So often, whether or not a group of faculty become engaged in these high-level, transdisciplinary efforts depends on one person in those spaces being a real leader,” she said.
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