Strengthening Interdisciplinary Research
Fighting Poverty
Chris Barrett, the Stephen B. and Janice G. Ashley Professor of Applied Economics and Management and project leader for the newest ISS Theme Project, Persistent Poverty and Upward Mobility, has traveled to the world’s richest and poorest areas in the search for workable solutions to rural poverty and hunger. Taking an interdisciplinary approach to the problem, more than a dozen Cornell faculty members, as well as research associates, visiting scholars, and graduate students, are examining what interventions can help reverse poverty, and how. Read more
Each year the Institute for the Social Sciences selects a theme project for in-depth investigation over three years. The main idea is to foster interdisciplinary connections among faculty and involve students in examining a critical issue from diverse perspectives.
Faculty across the disciplines are invited to submit proposals. At any given time, three projects are running simultaneously.
Up to 10 Cornell faculty members work together in-residence at the institute on the topic and its implications. By the end of the third year, the team produces substantive scholarly outputs that typically lead to publications, new courses, or the development of a new research center or institute, and often attract international attention and external funding.
The result is the production of interrelated research that might have taken decades to accumulate by individual researchers, and a wealth of unique learning opportunities for students.