Botanic Gardens’ Director to Retire

Christopher P. Dunn, PhD, the Elizabeth Newman Wilds Executive Director of Cornell Botanic Gardens, will retire on December 31, after 11 years leading Cornell's cultivated gardens, arboretum, and natural areas. This unit of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences is responsible for fully one-third of the Ithaca campus, including its iconic gorges, and serves as a living-learning classroom for students in every college and school and as a critical component of Cornell's academic enterprise.

Dunn ushered Cornell Botanic Gardens into a new era of relevance to the university, community, and world. Under his leadership, the unit adopted a new mission and vision focused on the connections between the diversity of plants and of human cultures.

Dunn recognized that the organization's name at that time-Cornell Plantations-did not appropriately characterize its physical spaces, operations, and public programs and hindered realization of its new mission. He led a thoughtful 18-month evaluation of the name and advocated for the more accurate "Cornell Botanic Gardens." In 2016, the university Board of Trustees voted to adopt "Cornell Botanic Gardens" as the official name of Cornell's 3,800-acre natural treasure.

Concurrent with the name change, the organization adopted a new mission: to inspire people through cultivation, conservation, and education to understand, appreciation, and nurture plants and the cultures they sustain. The new name and mission served as the first steps to a decade of increasing appreciation of the deep connections between peoples and plants, conserving plants and cultures, and advancing climate action.

"Christopher Dunn's leadership has helped to transform the Cornell Botanic Gardens into a dynamic meeting ground for education, alumni engagement, and the public good," said Benjamin Houlton, the Ronald P. Lynch Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. "His work exemplifies the spirit of CALS-bridging science and society through education, extension, and research. Through his commitment to ecological stewardship and global collaboration, Christopher has left an enduring legacy that will continue to enrich lives and landscapes for generations to come."

Implementing Cornell Botanic Gardens' bold mission called for an alternative funding model and sustainable financial resources. Dunn led a successful effort to showcase Cornell Botanic Gardens' role as a critical university asset resulting in the establishment of a stable budget model. Furthering the Botanic Gardens' financial stability, the market value of Cornell Botanic Gardens' endowment doubled, reaching $65 million in fiscal year 2026.

These changes fueled initiatives that delivered experiences of diversity, beauty, and hope to thousands in the Cornell community and the visiting public, through installations such as "Seeds of Survival and Celebration: plants and the Black experience," and "Ecological Calendars: finding hope in the face of climate change,"

"Through his leadership of Cornell Botanical Gardens, Christopher exemplified an intellectual and ethical commitment to biocultural diversity. He literally demonstrated how biodiversity feeds, cultural diversity, and in turn, how cultural diversity stewards biodiversity," said Karim-Aly Kassam, the International Professor of Environmental and Indigenous Studies in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, with whom Cornell Botanic Gardens partnered on the "Ecological Calendars" project. "This vision of the Gardens will continue to inspire staff and students at Cornell University well into the future."

Dunn began advancing knowledge of the interconnectedness of biological diversity and human cultures while leading the University of Hawaiʻi's arboretum. At Cornell, that commitment extended well beyond the Ithaca campus. He actively facilitated change in the public garden and horticulture professions toward embracing biological and cultural conservation as part of their critical work; and he demonstrated pathways to collaboration with partners in Indigenous and underrepresented communities.

He elevated Cornell Botanic Gardens' presence and influence in global conservation through significant leadership roles in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the International Association of Botanic Gardens (IABG). Dunn led a successful effort to engage more botanic gardens, zoos, and aquaria in collaborative conservation as members of IUCN, including Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability.

"Cornell Botanic Gardens is the jewel of the Cornell campus. The 3,800 acres of gardens, gorges, and green space it manages-along with ongoing exhibits, tours, and workshops-provide visitors with opportunities to enjoy and learn about nature as well as to reduce stress." said Andrea Glanz '74, chair of Cornell Botanic Gardens' Advisory Council. "As Christopher ends his role as executive director, he leaves this treasured university asset clearly focused on its mission, secure in its future, and welcoming to generations of Cornellians to come."