The PM Group focusses on solving immediate and near-term environmental (health and ecosystems impacts from pollution), climate (non-CO2 greenhouse gases), and social (widening inequality gaps) problems in a cost-effective way, providing support to policymaking at local and regional scales.
The PM Group addresses sustainability challenges in the near and long term through an improved understanding of the multiple benefits of policies and their distribution across society. The group has a strong focus on the development of new approaches for multi-sectoral policy interventions to manage pollution across different media (air, water, and soil) at various scales to address near-term concerns and enable long-term transformations and their public support towards a sustainable future. In particular, the group endeavors to enhance the systems perspective approach to address and explore issues such as the interactions and environmental impacts of pollution; assessment of sources of non-CO2 greenhouse gases; mitigation opportunities; approaches to address nutrient and material cycling; options for more equitable solutions; and improved methods for estimating the health and economic benefits of policy interventions.
Themes
Scenario Services and Scientific Software
Models, tools, datasets
Greenhouse Gas and Air Pollution Interactions and Synergies (GAINS)
Model for Energy Supply Strategy Alternatives and their General Environmental Impact (MESSAGEix)
ENGAGE Scenario Explorer
Policy applications
22 February 2023
Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP)
IIASA's GAINS model shapes international negotiations on international emission reduction accords under the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution.
22 February 2023
Input to European Union Climate Policies
Since more than 10 years, IIASA's GAINS model provides scientific input to the development of the climate policy proposals of the European Commission, dealing with (a) emission projections, mitigation potentials and costs for non-CO2 greenhouse gases, and (b) interactions and synergies between climate and air pollution strategies.
22 February 2023
European Union Air Quality Policies
Since 1995, IIASA's GAINS model has provided quantitative scientific analyses for the key air quality policy initiatives of the European Commission.
Projects
Finding solutions to pollution caused by shipping in Europe (EMERGE)
Development of a global integrated assessment modeling system for climate-air pollutants management focused on Northeast Asia (GUIDE)
Development of a collaborative, integrated management framework to improve future air quality in Northeast Asia (AQNEA)
Exploring National and Global Actions to reduce Greenhouse gas Emissions (ENGAGE)
Staff
Samuel Guéret
Researcher (PM)
Wolfgang Schöpp
Guest Senior Research Scholar (PM)
Katrin Kaltenegger
Researcher (PM)
Adriana Gomez Sanabria
Research Scholar (PM)
News
28 June 2024
Drowning in waste: pollution hotspots in aquatic environments
A new IIASA study explores waste management systems and reveals that achieving zero waste leakage by 2030 is unlikely, potentially jeopardizing related Sustainable Development Goals. The authors emphasize the need for global cooperation, particularly across four regions, to responsibly manage waste disposal.
12 June 2024
The Global Nitrous Oxide Budget 2024
IIASA researchers contributed to a new study finding that nitrous oxide emissions continued to rise between 1980 and 2020, marking a 40% increase in man-made emissions of this potent greenhouse gas over this period.
30 May 2024
New method could significantly reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions
New research by the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) and IIASA proposes using soil bacteria to cut greenhouse gas emissions from food production.
Events
Beijing, China
Air Pollution and Climate Change Conference
IIASA, Laxenburg, Austria
CATALYSE Meeting
Vienna, Austria and online
IIASA at EGU 2024
Focus
30 March 2024
Transforming waste into a valuable resource
As the world marks the International Day of Zero Waste, Adriana Gómez-Sanabria highlights that the path to zero waste will require a shift in society’s current consumption and production patterns. Originally conceived to shield humanity and the environment from the fallout of our actions, waste management systems must now evolve into engines of sustainability.
04 October 2023
ENGAGE Summary for Policymakers
As the world faces the risks of dangerous climate change, policymakers, industry and civil society leaders are counting on Integrated Assessment Models (IAMs) to inform and guide strategies to deliver on the objectives of the Paris Agreement (PA) and subsequent agreements.
Publications
Zimmermann, S., Kurz, D., Thrippleton, T., Mey, R., Perry, N.T., Posch, M. , & Schweier, J. (2024). Does Soil Acidification Matter? Nutrient Sustainability of Timber Harvesting in Forests on Selected Soils Developed in Sediments of the Early vs. Late Pleistocene. Forests 15 (7) e1079. 10.3390/f15071079. (In Press) Patange, O. , Purohit, P. , Avashia, V., Klimont, Z. , & Garg, A. (2024). Mitigation of non-CO2 greenhouse gases from Indian agriculture sector. Environmental Research Letters 19 e074020. 10.1088/1748-9326/ad4e4e. Tian, H., Pan, N., Thompson, R. L., Canadell, J. G., Suntharalingam, P., Regnier, P., Davidson, E. A., Prather, M., Ciais, P., Muntean, M., Pan, S., Winiwarter, W. , Zaehle, S., Zhou, F., Jackson, R. B., Bange, H. W., Berthet, S., Bian, Z., Bianchi, D., Bouwman, A. F., Buitenhuis, E. T., Dutton, G., Hu, M., Ito, A., Jain, A. K., Jeltsch-Thömmes, A., Joos, F., Kou-Giesbrecht, S., Krummel, P. B., Lan, X., Landolfi, A., Lauerwald, R., Li, Y., Lu, C., Maavara, T., Manizza, M., Millet, D. B., Mühle, J., Patra, P. K., Peters, G. P., Qin, X., Raymond, P., Resplandy, L., Rosentreter, J. A., Shi, H., Sun, Q., Tonina, D., Tubiello, F. N., van der Werf, G. R., Vuichard, N., Wang, J., Wells, K. C., Western, L. M., Wilson, C., Yang, J., Yao, Y., You, Y., & Zhu, Q. (2024). Global nitrous oxide budget (1980--2020). Earth System Science Data 16 (6) 2543-2604. 10.5194/essd-16-2543-2024. Dirnböck, T., Knaebel, K., Djukic, I., & Posch, M. (2024). Critical Limits for Acidification and Nutrient Nitrogen. Report No. (UBA-FB) FB001323/ENG, German Environment Agency (UBA) , Dessau-Roßlau, Germany. de Vries, W., Posch, M. , Simpson, D., de Leeuw, F.A.A.M., van Grinsven, H.J.M., Schulte-Uebbing, L.F., Sutton, M.A., & Ros, G.H. (2024). Trends and geographic variation in adverse impacts of nitrogen use in Europe on human health, climate, and ecosystems: A review. Earth-Science Reviews 253 e104789. 10.1016/j.earscirev.2024.104789.