University of Cambridge

About

The Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Cambridge has unrivalled strengths in research and teaching excellence, providing a source of knowledge and skills in the region.

The Department of Plant Sciences’ vision is to ensure that our high-quality discovery science contributes to tackling fundamental challenges in global food security, growing a sustainable bioeconomy, and protecting the environment.

We work to achieve five goals:

Enhancing production of plant derived products

Reducing agricultural inputs

Cutting losses from pests and pathogens

Enabling resilience to environmental change

Delivering sustainable bio-diverse landscapes

We welcome collaborations with business, industry and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and would like to hear from potential new partners; visit our website to find out more about our industry collaboration opportunities.

The Department of Plant Sciences is part of Plants at Cambridge, which brings together the unique concentration of research expertise in plant biology at the University of Cambridge and beyond, including the Crop Science Centre, the Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University, the Cambridge University Botanic Garden, and the Department of Biochemistry.

The Department of Plant Sciences is also involved in interdisciplinary agricultural research being undertaken through Interdisciplinary Research Centres such as Cambridge Global Food Security, Engineering Biology in Cambridge and the Cambridge Centre for Data-Driven Discovery.

Cambridge University has an extensive network of industrial interactions both globally and locally, exemplified by the Cambridge cluster and supported by Cambridge Enterprise, and most recently through the collaborative agri-tech partnership Ceres. International development in the area of food systems and sustainable agriculture is led by Cambridge Global Challenges. These are homes to dynamic communities of researchers already addressing crop-related issues, as recognized by support from research councils, government bodies and international agencies.