Long before he joined the Cornell faculty, Stephen Kresovich, Director of the Cornell Institute for Genomic Diversity, recognized the university's talent in using cutting-edge science to serve society. "I was always impressed by the important and challenging problems Cornell scientists picked for investigation and the vision and energy they brought to solving them. In my scientific field, faculty members at Cornell are the 'New York Yankees' of agriculture and conservation. They are globally recognized as the best. "

And in joining the faculty in the Department of Plant Breeding, Professor Kresovich continues this tradition. His research applies the tools of genomics and bioinformatics to solve problems of global food supply and conservation of biodiversity. "I can think of no more challenging and satisfying a mission than to serve society today through improving the crops we use in global agriculture AND to simultaneously provide future generations with the essential biodiversity required for progress in agriculture, medicine, and industry."

Kresovich's contribution comes from using molecular techniques to discover and describe the genetic diversity of plants, particularly the "small number of crops that provide the world's source of food, feed, fiber, and fuel." He and his collaborators at the Institute for Genomic Diversity have worked on cassava and millet and currently sorghum and closely related grass species discovering important variant versions of genes. The insights and information they generate are shared internationally, enriching genebanks, advancing plant conservation efforts, and improving the quality and yield of crops grown by the poorest people in the world.

In fact, Kresovich's collaborators come from all over the world — Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Germany, India, Kenya, Mexico, and Spain — and from all over Cornell — Plant Breeding, Plant Pathology, Soil, Crop, and Atmospheric Sciences, Ornamental Horticulture, Molecular Biology and Genetics, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Food Science, and the Bailey Hortorium. Like many life scientists at Cornell, he sees himself as a partner in the global community with a "responsibility to share his vision, training, and energy." And he values the stimulation of collaboration.

"At present, I am particularly interested in applying concepts of evolutionary and population genetics to solve agricultural problems. Because of this interest, a key collaborator for me is Dr. Charles ("Chip") Aquadro in the Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics. Chip's insights and understanding of evolutionary biology serve as the framework for me to employ new approaches for discovering, characterizing, conserving, and deploying useful genes or gene networks. If we're successful at discovering and deploying these genes, agricultural production becomes more stable and environmentally sound while yielding higher quality products. In developing countries, sound local production of nutritious foods is of the highest priority."

Understanding and conserving nature's biodiversity concern many life scientists at Cornell in many departments. Why? Nelson Hairston, Chairman and Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, explains, "It's good if our natural systems can persist in the face of environmental change, and greater diversity makes persistence more likely. Diversity of types means more possible organisms to provide food, medicines, and processing of pollutants. The world is a much more pleasant place when we have diverse organisms around us."

Hairston's work examines how that happens. "Why do we have the large number of different species living together, even in some very small areas — like a small lake or pond — and why do we have a large number of different genotypes (the specific genetic makeup of an organism) within a single population living in the same small area. One of my colleagues asks the question this way: 'Why isn't the world covered in one species of green slime?' i.e. Why isn't there just one species (and one genotype within that species) that does best everywhere?"

One way he has been addressing these questions is by looking at what he calls "natural time travelers." Many plants, animals, and microbes produce dormant cysts, eggs, or seeds that "survive for decades, sometimes centuries — our research group's record is hatching eggs over 300 years old — in a resistant state and then hatch or germinate. This allows each kind of organism to survive periods that are harmful and reappear when things are better. It turns out that this is a powerful mechanism for maintaining variation, even if the organism can't tell what year is good and what year is bad for hatching … as long as some cysts/seeds/eggs hatch every year, eventually they come out in a favorable year."

Hairston's goal is to understand how organisms respond to short-term fluctuations in the environment with more long-term environmental change and consider both the natural and human influences on these changes. Given this complexity, he too finds collaboration essential. Currently, Professor Hairston is working on a project that looks at the factors influencing changes in plankton populations through time in embayments along Lake Ontario. His collaborators include investigators in Natural Resource, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Urban Planning and two other New York State universities. Each member of the research team looks "at a different aspect of the embayment environment which gives us a much broader perspective on how these systems function." This interdisciplinary approach expands the scope of the research and is essential for solving the complex problems that threaten our environment.

Expanding the reach of scientists beyond the boundaries of traditional disciplines such as biology or physics reflects the realities of nature. And the current state of molecular biology has matured to the point where it can be used to describe and manipulate organisms and even ecosystems. This complex and exciting mix of people, ideas and technologies, although necessary, is also a challenge. No institution is better positioned than Cornell University, with its array of strong programs and facilities and culture of cross-disciplinary studies, to lead in this new era of collaboration and to apply research discovery to important global issues.

Why is Cornell an ideal place for you to conduct life sciences research?

Basic Environmental Science is a fundamental research focus for the New Life Sciences Initiative. While the Initiative targets Biogeochemistry and Biocomplexity and Molecular and Chemical Ecology specifically, scientists and engineers in many fields at Cornell are mining Cornell's diversity and working together to conduct research that will improve our environment and build a sustainable future. Understanding, conserving, and utilizing nature's biodiversity are central to many of these projects. Stephen Kresovich and Nelson Hairston share this interest, but approach the topic on different scales. Kresovich looks at diversity within a species identifying the source of the variation; Hairston studies diversity within an ecosystem identifying how variation is created and preserved.

Hairston: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (broadly — not just in the Department) at Cornell is among the best groups in the world. We were ranked 3rd in the US in graduate training and 4th in research faculty in the last NRC (National Research Council) report. Not only do we have excellent scientists, but we have an extraordinarily collaborative and interactive group of people. This makes it an easy place to work with few distractions. Because there are essentially no barriers to collaboration, it is easy to put together a research group to explore any topic we choose. Easy connectivity to excellent scientists in the next building or down the street is a big asset.

Kresovich: Cornell is an excellent place for interdisciplinary research. Advances in population and evolutionary genetics, bioinformatics, genomics, and nanobiotechnology at Cornell will provide essential insights and tools that allow me to develop high-resolution genetic studies for discovering, protecting, and deploying useful diversity. Also, Cornell is recognized for fostering communications among life and social scientists. This is particularly critical as science and technology are utilized to serve society.