Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Fellowship
Dairy CAF & Urban CAMP Programs
The Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Fellowship (CAMF) is a peer-to-peer learning program that builds climate resilience across farms, forests, and communities. CAMF is a partnership between the USDA Northeast Climate Hub and Cornell University, designed to empower farmers and agricultural advisors to gain and share knowledge and tools needed to be resilient in the face of climate uncertainty.
In 2025, Allison Chatrchyan, Yolanda Gonzalez and Savanna Shelnutt are training urban farmers and advisors in New York City, with the CCE Harvest NY Program, and the USDA NE Climate Hub (Kristin Benson). In 2024, members of the Cornell Climate Smart Farming team (Allison Chatrchyan, Kitty O’Neil, Lindsay Ferlito, Janice Degni, and Candace Hulbert) facilitated the Climate Adaptation Fellowship Program for dairy farmers and advisors in New York, Vermont, and Maine, with Sara Kelemen from the USDA NE Climate Hub. The program trained dairy producers and advisors who were concerned about climate impacts on farms, and were motivated to develop climate adaptation and/or mitigation plans for their operations. The program also helped train agriculture service providers to work with dairy farmers on planning and implementing strategies, and strengthened their ability to provide climate-focused support.
Harvest NY Ag Climate Resiliency Program
Harvest NY’s Ag Climate Resiliency program aims to mitigate the impact of climate change on New York’s farms through education, adaptation of production practices, and preparation for extreme weather events. Additionally, the team emphasizes the important role farms play in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration. Key practices include use of cover crops, agroforestry, rotational grazing, water management, manure management, and nitrogen-use efficiency.
The Ag Climate Resiliency Program is part of the larger Harvest NY Program, an innovative Cornell Cooperative Extension team that focuses on Growing New York’s Farm and Food Economy. Harvest New York seeks to link consumers and producers in the following project areas:
- Local Food and Supply Chain Management
- Urban Agriculture
- Community Gardens
- Emerging Crops: including Cannabis, small fruits, hops and more
- Ag Climate Resiliency
Ag Climate Resiliency Specialists Kitty O’Neil and Savanna Shelnutt are available to provide guidance on climate adaptation and mitigation planning or practices for farms in New York.
AI-LEAF Institute
The AI-LEAF Institute (for Land, Economy, Agriculture & Forestry) aims to advance foundational artificial intelligence (AI) by incorporating knowledge from agriculture and forestry sciences and leveraging these unique, new AI methods to curb weather effects while lifting rural economies. By creating a new scientific discipline and innovation ecosystem intersecting AI and weather-smart agriculture and forestry, our researchers and practitioners will discover and invent compelling AI-powered knowledge and solutions. Examples include AI-enhanced estimation methods of greenhouse gases and specialized field-to-market decision support tools. A key goal is to lower the cost of and improve accounting for carbon in farms and forests to empower carbon markets and inform decision-making. The Institute will also expand and diversify rural and urban AI workforces.
AI-LEAF is a joint effort involving the University of Minnesota Twin Cities (lead), Colorado State University, Cornell University, Delaware State University, North Carolina State University, and Purdue University.
Cornell University is one of six universities fostering the work of the AI-LEAF Institute. Cornell Climate Smart Farming team members Allison Chatrchyan, Johannes Lehmann, and Candace Hulbert are helping lead the AI-Climate Institute’s research, education, public engagement, and extension outreach to advance AI-technology in climate-smart agriculture and forestry.
Cornell Climate Stewards Program
The Cornell Climate Stewards Program trains NYS residents on the science, impacts, and solutions to climate change – so that they can support municipalities taking part in NYS Climate Smart Communities – and helps residents plan and implement volunteer projects – related to climate change education, mitigation, and adaptation – in an effort to inspire and support community-based climate action. Numerous farmers in New York State have completed the ten week curriculum, and worked on a volunteer project for their community.
The Cornell Climate Stewards Program was developed by researchers, Extension specialists, and students from Cornell University, NY Sea Grant, and Cornell Cooperative Extension through a rigorous three-year process involving many partners and funding from the National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA), federal Extension Smith-Lever dollars, and a pilot grant from the NYS Energy Research Development Agency (NYSERDA). In 2025, the program received funding from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and NY Office of Climate Change.