The S3 Group focuses on demand-side systems as entry points for sustainable transformations. The group analyses demand for energy and materials through the lens of service provision of mobility, shelter, and consumer goods, as well as how lifestyle changes can contribute to consumption reduction.
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The S3 Group have two overarching research objectives. First, to understand the evolution of behaviors and lifestyles around energy services and assess their environmental impacts; and second, to identify and understand policy interventions that can change behaviors and lifestyles to minimize environmental impacts. The group’s research binds together work on three domains that are critical for a transformation toward sustainable societies, namely buildings, mobility, and consumer goods, which are connected through changes in infrastructures and lifestyles. S3 aims to establish and lead a research community on demand-side transitions and to innovate conceptual frameworks for demand-side model comparisons.
Themes
Scenario Services and Scientific Software
Access to Energy Services
Finance
Sustainable buildings
Models, tools, datasets
Model for Energy Supply Strategy Alternatives and their General Environmental Impact (MESSAGEix)
ENGAGE Scenario Explorer
NGFS-IIASA Scenario Explorer
AR6 Scenario Explorer and Database
Projects
Exploring National and Global Actions to reduce Greenhouse gas Emissions (ENGAGE)
Next generation of AdVanced InteGrated Assessment modelling to support climaTE policy making (NAVIGATE)
Energy Demand changes Induced by Technological and Social innovations (EDITS)
Sustainable development pathways achieving Human well-being while safeguarding the climate And Planet Earth (SHAPE)
Staff
Merle Quade
Researcher (ECE, S3, DG)
Martina Otavova
Research Scholar (S3)
Volker Krey
Research Group Leader and Principal Research Scholar (IACC, S3)
Tieju Ma
Guest Senior Research Scholar (S3, TISS)
News
19 June 2026
Using less, living better: Demand-side climate action wins public support
A new IIASA-led study finds that climate strategies that cut energy and resource demand tend to improve quality of life across a broader range of dimensions than supply-side alternatives and shows that communicating these wider benefits can strengthen public support.
18 June 2026
Bridging Research and Policy on Circular Economy Pathways to Net-Zero
Reflections on how circular economy modelling research can better inform policy for the transition to net-zero
04 May 2026
Integrating energy, materials, and industry for climate and development goals
Within the framework of the International Vienna Energy and Climate Forum (IVECF) 2026, CircEUlar researchers Volker Krey (IIASA), Alessio Mastrucci (IIASA), Adriana Gomez Sanabria (IIASA), and Dominik Wiedenhofer (BOKU) convened a high-level Deep Dive session titled “Integrated green industrialisation strategies across the energy, material and climate nexus to achieve climate and development goals” on 10 April. The session brought together representatives from policy, industry, finance, international organisations, and research.
Events
Focus
Annual Report 2025: Energy, Climate, and Environment Program Highlights
The transition to a low-carbon future requires both ambitious action and a clear understanding of what works. In 2025, the Energy, Climate, and Environment Program produced research that helped clarify the opportunities, trade-offs, and practical pathways for accelerating climate mitigation and strengthening environmental sustainability.
23 April 2026
Building sector climate neutrality by 2050: Do we have a concrete elephant in the room at home?
Ahead of the recent International Vienna Energy and Climate Forum, IIASA researchers Benigna Boza-Kiss and Shonali Pachauri explored the often-overlooked role of the building sector in achieving climate neutrality by 2050. Drawing on IIASA research, they highlight the urgent need to transform how buildings are designed, renovated, and used, emphasizing demand-side solutions, policy reform, and systemic change to avoid locking in emissions for decades to come.
Publications
Eker, S. , Reiter, C. , Liu, Q., Kuhn, M., & Lutz, W. (2026). Wellbeing cost of carbon. Global Sustainability 9 e1. 10.1017/sus.2025.10042.
Nishiura, O., Fujimori, S. , & Oshiro, K. (2026). Development of a computable general equilibrium model representing direct air capture and carbon dioxide utilization. Energy and Climate Change 7 e100250. 10.1016/j.egycc.2026.100250.
Grubler, A. , Steg, L., Bento, N., Boza-Kiss, B. , De Stercke, S., McCollum, D., Nick, S., Pachauri, S. , van Valkengoed, A., Zimm, C. , Alves, T.L., & Qin, C. (2026). The undervalued quality-of-life benefits of demand-side energy and climate strategies. Communications Sustainability 1 (1) e97. 10.1038/s44458-026-00101-2.
Hamer, P.D., Markelj, M., Rojas-Munoz, O., Bonan, B., Calvet, J.-C., Marécal, V., Guenther, A., Trimmel, H. , Vallejo, I., Eckhardt, S., Sousa Santos, G., Sindelarova, K., Simpson, D., Schmidbauer, N., Hellén, H., Rubli, P., Reimann, S., Claude, A., Kubistin, D., Cozic, J., Dernie, J., & Tarrasón, L. (2026). Two biogenic volatile organic compound emission datasets over Europe based on land surface modelling and satellite data assimilation. Earth System Science Data 18 (5) 3635-3669. 10.5194/essd-18-3635-2026.
Alaux, N., Bechstedt, N., Zhong, X., Mastrucci, A. , Ramon, D., Steinberger-Maierhofer, D., Allacker, K., Passer, A., & Röck, M. (2026). Context-specific life cycle emissions pathways for EU buildings and construction. Nature Communications 10.1038/s41467-026-73433-1. (In Press)