150th anniversary CASNR
50th anniversary IANR

Celebration of Innovation

Aerial photo of the East Campus Mall during a parade, circa 1940.
Celebration of Innovation

The Celebration of Innovation commemorates the 150th anniversary of the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR) and the 50th anniversary of the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources (IANR) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

This joint celebration is an opportunity to look back at the big impacts CASNR and IANR have made both in Nebraska and around the world, the incredible advances and innovations that its faculty, staff, students and alumni have made in the agriculture and natural resources fields.

Events will take place across East Campus and around the state beginning with the CASNR Community Celebration on the East Campus Mall on Aug. 25, 2022. Check back soon as more events are added.

Aerial view of East Campus Mall.

History

East Campus Mall

In 1872, the University of Nebraska Board of Regents established what is now CASNR, and over the years, the college has educated thousands of students from Nebraska and around the world in sciences related to crop and livestock production, land management, water use, and food processing, among other important fields. CASNR was the home of UNL’s first honors program and undergraduate research initiative, both of which eventually grew to university-wide programs.

Today, CASNR students are exposed to an education that is transformative and allows each student to craft their experience to fit their passions. Individualized attention and support helps students development their professional skills and hands-on experiences both inside and outside the classroom allow opportunities for continuous growth.

Two men kneel by a tractor they are repairing, circa 1920.

The early days of tractor repair.

Just over a century later, in 1973, the Nebraska Legislature established the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with the passage of LB149. This legislation culminated more than 10 years of discussion by state leaders, University officials and agriculture interests in Nebraska to ensure that the prominence of agricultural research, education and extension at UNL was proportional to agriculture’s incredible impact on the state’s economy, success and identity.

Today, IANR is focused on providing food, fuel, feed and fiber for a growing world in a way that promotes resilience of our natural resources and high quality of life for those engaged in agriculture.