Climate change and energy were among the topics that received the most media attention in 2023. IIASA researchers contributed to six out of the 25 most mentioned papers in online news articles, as well as on blogs and social media platforms.

Using Altmetric data for 2023, Carbon Brief has compiled its annual list of the 25 most talked-about climate- or energy-related papers that were published the previous year. The list focuses on peer-reviewed research papers only – commentaries or other papers that are not formally peer-reviewed are not included.

The infographic below shows which papers made it into the top 10, while the article includes analysis of the full list of 25, including the diversity of their authors and which journals feature most frequently.

The climate papers most featured in the media in 2023 © Carbon Brief

The climate papers most featured in the media in 2023

News

wildfire in southeast asia

17 July 2026

Connecting the dots behind Southeast Asia's catastrophic fires

How do wildfires grow into catastrophic events? By tracing the earliest detectable origins of the devastating 2015 equatorial Southeast Asian fires, researchers found that most large fires had multiple origin points and identified the ecological, climatic, and human factors associated with where fires begin. These findings provide new insights that could help improve fire prevention and understanding of fire risks under climate change across tropical landscapes.
mother with daughter making salad together, chopping fresh vegetables on board

15 July 2026

Shift to healthy, sustainable diets would reshape global agriculture

IIASA researchers contributed to a new international study showing that a combination of healthier diets, improved farm productivity, and reduced food waste could fundamentally reshape global agriculture, substantially reducing pressure on land and greenhouse gas emissions while delivering significant benefits for human health and the environment.
African farmer using digital tablet in rice field

10 July 2026

CropSuit app to help farmers grow the right crops in the right places

Farmers, extension workers, and governments now have a powerful new tool to help identify the crops best suited to specific parcels of land, enabling more efficient use of resources and greater resilience to climate change.