The TISS group explores innovative solutions to environmental issues that integrate social, institutional, and governance drivers with technological and economic considerations, with an emphasis on improving conditions for the most deprived and marginalized in society.

The research objective of TISS is to identify, analyze and promote innovative technological, social and institutional solutions for human development that leave no one behind and that respect planetary boundaries. Novel approaches are required to achieve a rapid transformation that reconciles much needed human development, particularly for the most deprived and marginalized in society, with environmental preservation and ecosystems restoration. Such solutions span a wide range from digital service provision, to integrated sharing and circular economy concepts, to decentralized, distributed infrastructures which empower active “prosumers”. Central to them all is that they can provide improved access to and provision of services critical for human well-being (nutrition, shelter, health, mobility, communication, social interactions) with vastly reduced resource and environmental footprints.

TISS research emphasizes particularly two focal areas:

  1. A systemic analysis of technological, social and institutional innovations (including inter alia new business models, social entrepreneurship, and novel public policy designs) with a focus on end-use services for human wellbeing that minimize negative environmental impacts.
  2. Integration of heterogeneity, governance, distributional and equity considerations in policy analysis and implementation under a broader framing of transformations towards resilient & sustainable futures.

TISS research can draw both on the accumulated research achievements of its research staff, novel methodological approaches, as well as a wide array of online resources (see also below) made available for the use of the wider scientific and policy communities and that provided critical inputs to the work of the IPCC and The World in 2050 Initiative. Important research TISS can build on include for example (see below links to selected publication highlights): A thorough understanding of innovation systems combining conceptual with detailed empirical case studies; search on granular technology options and their advantages for equitable access to services and for rapid upscaling; empirical research on distributions and deprivations of access to service provision critical for human development; the influential research on Decent Standards of Living, again combining conceptual theoretical work with empirical quantifications.

The group’s three research areas include:

Energy services and infrastructure for decent living

Access to energy services and basic infrastructures are fundamental to meeting basic human needs, and a key requirement in the fight to eradicate poverty around the world and achieve decent living standards (DLS) Using the lens that people demand amenities and services rather than products and goods, this research entails both a diagnostic (identification of provisioning gaps) as well as a policy dimension (identifying novel options and crafting strategies for their rapid rollout and implementation). This research can build on considerable in-house knowledge, data and tools that were developed in pioneering work on describing heterogeneity in levels of service provisioning, a broader focus on distributive justice in human and planetary wellbeing, and the multiple dimensions of inequality, modeling energy access, as well as the development of the concept of Decent Standards of Living.

Technological, social, and institutional innovation for development

Meeting development needs under planetary boundaries requires novel solutions combining technological, social and institutional innovations which are interdependent. TISS research aims to identify those novel solutions that provide needed services while minimizing negative environmental externalities and provide new business and economic opportunities for development. Examples include digital service provisions and novel forms of shared mobility that seamlessly integrate public transport with on-demand private mobility via shared vehicle fleets. This research can draw on considerable in-house expertise on innovation systems and the determinants of successful (or unsuccessful) innovations from two decades of prior research at IIASA.

Governance and institutional structures

Quality of institutions and effective governance are some of the key enablers of feasible transformations of our societies and economies towards a climate-neutral and sustainable world. TISS research is building bridges between political science and political economy approaches, and quantitative scenarios and modeling efforts, to enhance the representation of governance and institutional capacities that, for instance, effect the extent to which adaptive capacity of a society is constrained or climate policies and low-carbon transition pathways are feasible. Work in this area aims to contribute to understanding of the role of policies, institutions and governance in sustainable energy system transitions.

Selected Publications Highlights
 

Themes

Just and Feasible Transitions

Scenario Services and Scientific Software

Access to Energy Services

Heterogeneities and Inequalities

Models, tools, datasets

Photo 238871488 © Lakshmiprasad S | Dreamstime.com

Energy Access Interactive (ENACT)

gas pipeline

Model for Energy Supply Strategy Alternatives and their General Environmental Impact (MESSAGEix)

Photo 134399877 © Designer491 | Dreamstime.com

ENGAGE Scenario Explorer

Projects

Beige and colored pawns grouped together

Exploring National and Global Actions to reduce Greenhouse gas Emissions (ENGAGE)

Abstract image: hand holding Earth against sunset with network concept superimposed

GeoEngineering and NegatIve Emissions pathways in Europe (GENIE)

Grossglockner Austria

Next generation of AdVanced InteGrated Assessment modelling to support climaTE policy making (NAVIGATE)

Sustainable development goals

Sustainable development pathways achieving Human well-being while safeguarding the climate And Planet Earth (SHAPE)

Staff

Leila Niamir profile picture

Leila Niamir

Research Scholar (S3, TISS)

Bas van Ruijven profile picture

Bas van Ruijven

Research Group Leader and Principal Research Scholar (S3); Principal Research Scholar (IACC, TISS)

Setu Pelz profile picture

Setu Pelz

Research Scholar (TISS)

Olivia Coldrey profile picture

Olivia Coldrey

Guest Research Scholar (TISS)

News

Rethinking electricity demand

06 February 2025

Rethinking energy demand can foster sustainable development and reduce emissions from buildings and transport

In a new study, IIASA scientists show that a mix of policy measures, including both technological solutions and behavioral changes, can significantly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from energy use in buildings and transport.
Selfie portrait of girls at a university campus

05 February 2025

Gender equality is crucial for a climate resilient future

A new IIASA study shows why gender equality trends should be central when planning how societies adapt to and mitigate climate change. A society where women have little access to decision-making or finance or have less education, will be ill-equipped to find and implement solutions, ranging from concrete measures like irrigation or crop rotation, to behavior shifts and engineering the energy transition. We need to ask the “what-if” questions related to progress towards equality or deterioration of inequality. One thing is clear: gender inequality will have a high price if neglected.
Greece Delegation Visit

24 January 2025

Delegation from Greece visits IIASA to explore further collaborations

On 23 January 2025, IIASA was honored to receive a high-level delegation from Greece, visiting to learn about the institute’s research on wildfires, urban planning, wind and solar energy, as well as to explore opportunities for future collaboration.

Focus

In Solidarity for a Green World. Climate change conference slogan concept background.

07 November 2024

COP29 in Baku is a Climate Finance COP: It’s about justice

At the COP in Baku, Azerbaijan, nation states must decide on a new climate finance regime, that will take effect from 2025. Studies show that by 2030, a sixfold increase in international financing is needed globally, for the needed mitigation investments alone. As tensions rise over who should pay, it will be difficult to achieve new and fair targets. Success is crucial to keep the Paris Agreement within reach.

Melting of glaciers and the Greenland ice sheet

04 November 2024

Overshooting 1.5°C is risky – that’s why we need to hedge our bets

In a new article published on The Conversation, Carl-Friedrich Schleussner, Gurav Ganti, and Joeri Rogelj discuss the urgent need to accelerate global emissions reductions to limit global warming to 1.5°C, cautioning against reliance on overshoot scenarios that assume temporary warming above 1.5°C, which may lead to irreversible climate impacts.

Publications