New York University has launched the NYU Earth Systems Institute, a multidisciplinary hub that will deploy AI and computational tools to better predict environmental changes and to advance means to better prepare and respond to these global phenomena.
“Understanding and addressing the rapidly changing nature of environmental forces that affect Earth require both innovative and precise measures,” says Laure Zanna, Joseph B. Keller and Herbert B. Keller Professor of Applied Mathematics at NYU’s Courant Institute School of Mathematics, Computing, and Data Science, who will lead the institute. “By drawing from AI, engineering, and natural science, the NYU Earth Systems Institute will improve projections of Earth’s weather and climate—and the conditions our infrastructure will face—while developing measures to strengthen our food, water, and energy systems.”
The NYU Earth Systems Institute will incorporate a vast array of expertise required to explore, understand, and address the impacts of an evolving climate, with computational researchers from the Courant Institute School of Mathematics, Computing, and Data Science, engineers from the Tandon School of Engineering, and policy experts and environmental scientists in NYU’s Arts and Science disciplines.
“Environmental changes require a comprehensive approach, and that is exactly what we are doing at NYU through the launch of the Earth Systems Institute,” says Juan de Pablo, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Executive Vice President for Global Science and Technology and executive dean of the Tandon School. “Using innovative mathematical methods, advanced computation tools, artificial intelligence, and the wisdom and expertise of faculty across our vast network of schools, NYU will not only be able to better understand and predict climate phenomena, but will also work on the solutions necessary to support humanity in our ever-changing planet.”
The institute’s leadership will also include Miguel Modestino, Donald F. Othmer Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering, and Associate Professor Sonali McDermid, chair of NYU’s Department of Environmental Studies. Modestino and McDermid will serve as the institute’s co-deputy directors.
“Bringing tools like artificial intelligence together with the power of engineering solutions will go a long way toward NYU being a leader in the fight against environmental changes,” says Modestino, director of the Tandon School’s Sustainable Engineering Initiative. “Computational science will serve as the backbone for policy changes and protections.”
“Armed with cutting-edge science, policymakers can make informed and impactful decisions tackling both present and future sustainability challenges,” adds McDermid, who has studied climate change impacts on food and water security and carbon sequestration through natural climate solutions through her affiliation with the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies. She has also served as the climate co-lead for the Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project.
The NYU Earth Systems Institute, which follows the January launch of the Simons Center for Computational Geophysical Flows , also led by Zanna, brings together dozens of NYU researchers doing pioneering work at the frontiers of science and technology across several established research areas:
AI-Powered Next-Generation Earth System Models: NYU researchers are pioneering a new generation of smart models to forecast the future, combining the reliability of physics with the speed of artificial intelligence to create highly accurate, virtual replicas of our Earth system—exemplified by the M²LInES project and its AI ocean emulator.
Land, Food, and Environment Systems: Food and land use systems are among the biggest drivers of environmental change—and also highly vulnerable to these rapid global shifts. NYU researchers are expanding global research efforts and developing novel AI tools to study the intersection of food, land, and the environment, with the aim of securing global food supplies.
Infrastructure Systems Resilience: Experts recognize that critical infrastructure, power grids, water networks, transportation routes, and global supply chains must adapt to a rapidly shifting climate. NYU scientists and engineers are combining the foundational physics of these systems and developing data-driven, hybrid models that optimize how these interconnected networks integrate low-carbon technologies and maintain resilience across diverse geographic areas.
Open-Source Monitoring and Modeling for Climate: Prioritizing “climate intelligence for all,” faculty will expand existing open-source data and AI-powered predictive models in order to arm decision-makers with real-time insights for global risk mitigation and adaptation.
The Earth Systems Institute is a key element of the university’s science and technology initiative, led by Executive Vice President de Pablo. The institute joins cutting-edge computational assets, such as the Torch supercomputer, the recruiting and hiring of over 100 world-class faculty by 2031, and the launch of the Courant Institute School of Mathematics, Computing, and Data Science, the Quantum Institute, the Institute for Engineering Health, the Urban Institute, the Center for Robotics and Embodied Intelligence, and the Center for Responsible Artificial Intelligence.
Editor’s Note: In November 2025, NYU announced the establishment of the Courant Institute School of Mathematics, Computing, and Data Science . The newly established school recognizes the storied history of the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences—and its strengths in both applied and pure mathematics—while encompassing NYU’s Center for Data Science and linking the computer science departments at Courant and the Tandon School of Engineering.
# # #