Building on the research previously undertaken in the Ecosystems Services and Management and Water programs, the BNR Program fully exploits the potential for biodiversity research within integrated system analysis.
The program brings together different elements of land and aquatic ecosystems including agriculture, forests, and fisheries with water and the marine environment to inform global and regional policy assessments and provide robust science-based knowledge and foresight. The program aims to establish IIASA as an international community hub for biosphere research through innovative tool development; to lead the integration of biophysical-economic modeling with governance; to engage with stakeholders; and to facilitate community driven efforts. It provides policymaking support through core program and group research undertaken in the four BNR research groups.
BNR further engages in bilateral collaborations with other research programs and groups at the institute on key cross-cutting themes such as climate change adaptation and mitigation, the green economy, resilient food systems, transboundary governance, resource depletion and migration, and digital transformation.
Projects
Designing a resilient and coherent Trans-European Network for Nature and People (NaturaConnect)
Staff
Shubham Tiwari
Researcher (AFE)
Albert Brouwer
Research Scholar (IBF)
Paula Abarca del Rio
Project Officer (WAT)
Harrij van Velthuizen
Guest Senior Research Scholar (WAT)
News
05 December 2024
Four distinguished scholars receive the IIASA Lifetime Achievement Award
This year, the award is granted to four researchers: Markus Amann, Joanne Linnerooth-Bayer, Sten Nilsson, and Sergei Scherbov, whose pioneering work has not only guided the global political discourse in the fields of demography, climate change, and the environment but also shaped IIASA as the international hub for systems analysis.
19 November 2024
IIASA researchers recognized on Clarivate’s 2024 Highly Cited Researchers™ List
The 2024 Highly Cited Researchers™ list by Clarivate celebrates individuals whose research has had a profound and wide-reaching impact. IIASA is proud to have its Director General, Hans Joachim (John) Schellnhuber, as well as 10 additional exceptional researchers associated with the Institute recognized for their contributions in various fields.
05 November 2024
How ecosystem restoration benefits national policies
IIASA scientists show that preserving ecosystems and fostering socioeconomic development is not a trade-off. On the contrary, an integrated approach is beneficial to national policies. We share examples from India, Brazil, and Indonesia.
Events
Austrian Academy of Sciences, Dr. Ignaz-Seipel-Platz 2, 1010 Vienna
IIASA-OeAW lecture: research and prevention of forest fires
Baku, Azerbaijan
IIASA at COP29 in Azerbaijan
Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) & Online
German IIASA Networking Event: "Systems analysis for a sustainable and peaceful future"
Focus
29 October 2024
Biodiversity COP16 in Colombia: Time to deliver
Who lives up to the promises made two years ago? Not many. Only about 35 countries have a strategy on how to meet biodiversity targets, says Piero Visconti, Biodiversity, Ecology, and Conservation (BEC) Research Group Leader at IIASA. But in 2022, at COP15 in Montreal, the countries pledged to preserve 30 percent of the planet’s land and seas. At the same time, rich countries also don’t live up to their promise to help the poor with financing. This COP needs to show results.
17 July 2024
Biodiversity lessons from nature
IIASA researchers Silvia Artuso and Juliette Martin reflect on a recent workshop presented at the Institute as part of the IIASA School Engagement Initiative, during which they introduced students to systems analysis and took them on an adventure to explore the amazing biodiversity of Laxenburg park.
Publications
Yuwono, B., Kranzl, L., Haas, R., Dewi, R.G., Siagian, U.W.R., Kraxner, F., & Yowargana, P. (2025). Incorporating grid development in capacity expansion optimisation - a case study for Indonesia. Applied Energy 378 e124837. 10.1016/j.apenergy.2024.124837. Hong, M., Song, C., Kim, M., Kraxner, F., Ko, Y., Son, J., & Lee, W.-K. (2025). Realizing climate resilient development pathways in forestry: A focus on carbon management in Republic of Korea. Environmental Impact Assessment Review 110 e107665. 10.1016/j.eiar.2024.107665. Gustafson, E.J., Lucash, M.S., Shvidenko, A., Sturtevant, B.R., Miranda, B.R., Shchepashchenko, D. , & Matsumoto, H. (2024). Climate change and disturbance interact to alter landscape reflectivity (albedo) in boreal forests across a large latitudinal gradient in Siberia. Science of the Total Environment 956 e177043. 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.177043. Myburgh, S., Kosatica, E., Pfister, S., Kissinger, M., Fridman, D. , & Koellner, T. (2024). An integrated biophysical-ecological assessment of embedded virtual water flows linked to Israel's consumption of agricultural crops. Science of the Total Environment 955 e177195. 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.177195. Goodwin, K., Li, M., & Wiedmann, T. (2024). Beyond greenhouse gases – Comprehensive planetary boundary footprints to measure environmental impact. Sustainable Production and Consumption 52 29-44. 10.1016/j.spc.2024.10.009. Jandl, R., Hager, H., Kraxner, F., Ledermann, T., & Weiss, P. (2024). Carbon dioxide neutrality of sustainably managed forests of Austria. Ecological Engineering 209 e107417. 10.1016/j.ecoleng.2024.107417.