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The Strategic Initiatives (SI) Program engages in active horizon scanning to identify initiatives of high strategic impact in order to continuously push the boundaries of systemic analyses.
The program works closely with the IIASA National and Regional Member Organizations (MOs) to identify MO-specific research interests and needs and leverage the expertise available across the institute to break new ground in systems research and applications while also establishing and building strategic partnerships. IIASA strategic initiatives are time-bound and set up via periodic competitive, rigorously scrutinized, internal calls for proposals.
Initiatives are selected based on their ability to draw on cross-program expertise and expand the IIASA research portfolio beyond that identified in the research plans of other programs. The initiatives pursued under the auspices of the program are typically of value and interest to several or all MOs and serve as a vehicle to better align the research interests of MOs and IIASA, albeit with a clear focus on themes identified in the IIASA strategy.
The objectives of a Strategic Initiative include:
- Leverage cross-program expertise and expand IIASA’s research portfolio beyond that identified in research plans of other Programs.
- Lead to high strategic impact scientific outputs
- Be a vehicle to better align MOs and IIASA’s research interests, albeit with a clear focus on themes identified in IIASA’s strategy
- Act as a magnet for external co-funding
- Be set up via a formal call for proposals with a defined selection process and evaluation criteria.
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Strategic Initiatives Program Impact:
- SI activities lead to wide MO engagement through opportunities to co-design overarching SI research themes as well as project proposals
- A total of six SI projects have been funded with active, strong input from MO countries. Four projects are currently running (RESIST, TRUST, bloom and Fire&Ice), while two (FairSTREAM, JustTrans4All) concluded in 2024
- SI provides opportunities for young and mid-career female researchers to take up the role as PI or Co-PI, thus increasing the number of women in leading positions: 5 SI projects are women-led and 1 project has a female Co-PI
- SI facilitates cross-program collaboration that would otherwise not take place: Funded projects involve around 40 IIASA researchers from 11 research groups and 5 programs
- In 2024 we organized individual interviews with our MOs to gather their views on the objectives, results and future of the SI Program.
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IIASA Connect is bringing together our NMO network and the Strategic Initiative researchers.
Projects
Just Transitions to Net-Zero Carbon Emissions for All (JustTrans4ALL)
fairSTREAM
Tools for Raising and UnderStanding Trust in systems science through citizen engagement (TRUST)
Resilience of Ecosystem Services provided by Intact and Sustainably managed Terrestrial ecosystems (RESIST)
Staff
Sandra Brozek
Program and Project Officer (NODES, SI)
Steffen Fritz
Program Director and Principal Research Scholar (SI); Principal Research Scholar (NODES)
Katya Perez Guzman
Research Scholar (NODES, SI)
Holger Hoff
Guest Research Scholar (SI)
News
18 December 2024
Celebrating a year of impact: IIASA highlights in 2024
IIASA proudly looks back on another successful year. Our year-end video showcases some of the milestones that have shaped IIASA's growth and impact in the global scientific community.
27 November 2023
EQU Justice Framework Workshop at IIASA
The Equity and Justice Research Group, in collaboration with the IIASA Strategic Initiative projects fairSTREAM, JustTRans4ALL and TRUST, hosted a Justice Framework Workshop on 16 November at IIASA.
13 September 2023
IIASA Flagship Report: Illuminating the path to sustainable wellbeing
IIASA is proud to announce the launch of its Flagship Report, "Systems Analysis for Sustainable Wellbeing. 50 Years of IIASA Research, 40 Years After the Brundtland Commission, Contributing to the Post-2030 Global Agenda” on Wednesday, 13 September 2023 at an official UN event in the framework of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly and the Sustainable Development Goals mid-term review.
Events
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"
Vienna, Austria and online
IIASA at EGU 2024
Focus
27 June 2024
RESIST
The Resilience of Ecosystem Services provided by Intact and Sustainably managed Terrestrial ecosystems (RESIST) project aims to develop a modeling framework that integrates biophysical feedbacks and socioeconomic drivers affecting the environment.
27 June 2024
TRUST
Researchers from the IIASA Advancing Systems Analysis Program, Biodiversity and Natural Resources Program, Energy, Climate and Environment Program, and from the Population and Just Societies Program share their expertise to carry out the IIASA Tools for Raising and UnderStanding Trust in systems science through citizen engagement (TRUST) Strategic Initiative.
Publications
Fraisl, D. , See, L. , Fritz, S. , Haklay, M., & McCallum, I. (2025). Leveraging the collaborative power of AI and citizen science for sustainable development. In: Exploring the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Transforming Citizen Science: Privacy, Data Sharing, and Open Science, 19 February 2025. See, L. , Chen, Q., Crooks, A., Laso Bayas, J.C. , Fraisl, D. , Fritz, S. , Georgieva, I. , Hager, G. , Hofer, M. , Lesiv, M. , Malek, Z. , Milenkovic, M., Moorthy, I., Orduña-Cabrera, F. , Pérez Guzmán, K. , Shchepashchenko, D. , Shchepashchenko, M., Steinhauser, J. , & McCallum, I. (2025). New Directions in Mapping the Earth’s Surface with Citizen Science and Generative AI. iScience e111919. 10.1016/j.isci.2025.111919. (Submitted) Fraisl, D. , See, L. , Fritz, S. , Haklay, M., & McCallum, I. (2024). Leveraging the collaborative power of AI and citizen science for sustainable development. Nature Sustainability 10.1038/s41893-024-01489-2. Parente, L., Sloat, L., Mesquita, V., Consoli, D., Stanimirova, R., Hengl, T., Bonannella, C., Teles, N., Wheeler, I., Hunter, M., Ehrmann, S., Ferreira, L., Mattos, A.P., Oliveira, B., Meyer, C., Şahin, M., Witjes, M., Fritz, S. , Malek, Z. , & Stolle, F. (2024). Annual 30-m maps of global grassland class and extent (2000–2022) based on spatiotemporal Machine Learning. Scientific Data 11 e1303. 10.1038/s41597-024-04139-6. Hager, G. , Moorthy, I., Brozek, S., Christantoni, I., Clarke, N., Coelho, B., Dadoukis, A., Dinis, J., Dörre, J., Dunn, J., Gāgane, N., Grivas, G., Harzenetter, M., Hunia, A., Karagiannopoulou, K., Marx, V., Pins, G., Skudra, S., Tsakanika, D., Tsertou, A., van Aken, S., van Holten, L., van Leeuwen, E., Versteeg, M., Warias, J., & Zučika, A. (2024). Measuring and assessing urban green infrastructure with citizens: stories from Urban ReLeaf cities. In: 5th ESP Europe Conference, 18-22 November 2024, Wageningen, Netherlands.