CITRIS and the Banatao Institute

Creating information technology solutions for society's most pressing challenges

Strategic Plan

Collage of photos of a computer chip, an older person taking their blood pressure while looking at a tablet computer, a young person piloting a drone, a person wearing a hat and long-sleeved shirt operating a machine between rows of crops, and the sun shining through a grove of tall trees.

Leading interdisciplinary IT research and discovery for a better world

For over 20 years, the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society and the Banatao Institute (CITRIS) at the University of California (UC) have catalyzed technology-driven solutions for the most pressing issues facing California and the world. Combining the complementary strengths of four UC campuses — Berkeley, Davis, Merced and Santa Cruz — our interdisciplinary approach to discovery and innovation is critical to meeting the needs and challenges of a diverse and changing planet.

This strategic plan outlines the priorities and aspirations that empower CITRIS to expand the frontiers of knowledge in an ever-evolving IT landscape and help drive innovation and economic growth for the public good.

To ensure this plan serves to advance CITRIS’s bold mission, a set of institute-wide indicators has been established to continuously assess our collective contributions to the UC system, the state of California and beyond.

CITRIS’s four impact indicators will guide strategies and activities that:

  1. Catalyze interdisciplinary solutions to complex societal challenges by leveraging our cross-campus excellence in information technology and its applications.
  2. Foster faculty engagement through CITRIS-sponsored research, reaching both emerging innovators and established experts.
  3. Expand student discovery opportunities within tomorrow’s high-tech sectors.
  4. Broaden and increase fundraising from industry, philanthropic and government sources.

Research Initiatives

CITRIS focuses on six research initiatives, grouped into the subcategories of Core Technology and Technology and Society: CITRIS Aviation, CITRIS Climate, CITRIS Health, CITRIS People and Robots, CITRIS Policy Lab and EDGE in Tech.

Core Technology: catalyzing innovation to address urgent global challenges

Technology and Society: fostering societal impact

Labs and Programs

World-class labs, testbeds and research opportunities

Multicampus Collaboration

Leveraging the research strengths of four UC campuses

Student Discovery

Undergraduate and graduate students welcome

Partnerships and the Public

Engage with CITRIS research

Download the 2022–23 Strategic Plan (PDF)