Join us for this highly topical lecture by IIASA Distinguished Visiting Fellow, Dirk Messner, moderated by IIASA Interim Deputy Director General for Science, Wolfgang Lutz.

The current global situation presents both a potential threat and an opportunity for the vision of a sustainability transformation. Staying within planetary boundaries and ensuring socially just and sustainable development, however, calls for robust political and social transformation.

As part of the IIASA 50th Anniversary celebrations, IIASA Distinguished Visiting Fellow Dirk Messner, President of the German Environment Agency (Umwelt Bundesamt – UBA), will address this issue in his lecture titled, Sustainability transformation in multiple crises, emphasizing the role of systems analysis in responding to multiple crises around the world.

Dirk Messner and Wolfgang Lutz © IIASA

Distinguished Visiting Fellows are elected by the IIASA Council and comprise a global community of experts and leaders in research and at the science-policy interface with a proven track record of achievement and impact. They display a clear affinity for systemic thinking and analysis and recognize the key role of inter- and trans-disciplinary approaches to problem-solving. They are the true ambassadors of IIASA and serve as a resource for the IIASA community during their visits to the institute.

Open to IIASA staff, alumni, and friends (limited to 100 attendees).

Upcoming Events

Antalya, Türkiye

IIASA at the UN Climate Change Conference

COP31 Cryosphere Pavilion, Blue Zone

SPARCCLE, ACCREU and CROSSEU to Organise a Side Event at COP31

Austrian Academy of Sciences, Festive Hall, Dr. Ignaz Seipel-Platz 2, 1010 Vienna

On a Collision Course in Orbit: Who Bears Responsibility for Space Debris?

Beijing, China

Overshoot Conference 2026

Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW), Seminar Room 1, Bäckerstraße 13, 1010 Vienna, Austria

Citizen Science and Remote Sensing for Forest Monitoring

IIASA, Laxenburg, Austria

GAINS Model Workshop