The Rausser College of Natural Resources

The Rausser College of Natural Resources is the first college in the UC system, dating back to the formation of the College of Agriculture in 1868, when the California legislature established the University of California in Berkeley, and the federal ersity of California in Berkeley, and the federal Morrill Act established a national system of research stations to foster teaching and research related to agriculture. UC Berkeley became the first state-run Agricultural Experiment Station and the first land-grant college in California. In 1914, the College of Agriculture established a forestry program that included the study of forests and wildlands, along with their many resources and services, a program that eventually became the School of Forestry. As natural resource and environmental issues expanded beyond traditional farming and forestry, the College's mission also expanded. In 1974, the former agricultural and forestry schools joined with other environmental, biological, and food sciences to form the College of Natural Resources. In 2020, the College was renamed the Rausser College of Natural Resources in honor of a landmark $50 million gift by Gordon Rausser, former dean of the college and the Robert Gordon Sproul Distinguished Professor Emeritus of agricultural and resource economics at UC Berkeley. The gift was the largest donation ever received by the College and the largest naming gift of any academic unit at UC Berkeley at the time. More information on Gordon Rausser may be found here. For more than 150 years, the college has focused on increasing society’s understanding of the earth and the environment, and how humans and nature interact. Learn about our academic offerings, our research and outreach, and our countless alumni making a difference. Agriculture and natural resources have been a cornerstone of the University of California, Berkeley since its founding in 1868. Follow along as we chart Rausser College’s path from its earliest iterations to its present day status as a leader in public education, research, and outreach. ...view more