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Mission

The Robert A. and Ruth E. Polson Institute for Global Development was established in 2001 as a research and outreach institute within the Department of Development Sociology of Cornell University. The Polson Institute for Global Development promotes theoretical and applied research activities related to global development. The goal of these activities is to enhance and extend the intellectual work and exchange among members of the Development Sociology Department, and between the Department and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and other colleges and programs of Cornell University, as well as off-campus development institutes and organizations.

The activities of the Polson Institute include research, instruction, outreach and interaction with other institutes and programs in the field of development, as well as special lectures, workshops, seminars and working paper series. These activities are framed by the following themes:

  • Social movements, civil society, and governance
  • Inequalities and social exclusion
  • Gender and identity transformations
  • Population, community, and environment
  • Food and agricultural systems
  • Local context, global processes

These themes represent the broad interests of members of the Polson Institute and the Institute's Research Working Groups.