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Without the implementation of nature-based solutions through actions such as halting deforestation and promoting large-scale native vegetation restoration, Brazil would jeopardize its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) pledges including achieving net zero GHG emissions by 2050, according to a new study. The researchers also emphasize that stopping deforestation is the most important mitigation measure Brazil can take towards net zero while preventing biodiversity loss.

The land use, land use change, and forestry sector plays a strong role in achieving global climate targets, but a gap exists between how scientists and countries account for its emissions. A new study highlights how mitigation benchmarks change when assessing IPCC scenarios from a national inventory perspective, with net-zero timings arriving up to five years earlier and cumulative emissions to net-zero being 15-18% smaller.

IIASA is proud to announce that nine researchers associated with the institute have been recognized in the 2023 Highly Cited Researchers™ list by Clarivate.

The attractiveness of new hydropower is decreasing fast, both due to the increasing economic competitiveness of solar panels and to the increasingly uncertain effects of climate change on river flows. The majority of new dams proposed across Africa should, therefore, probably never be built, suggests a new study published in Science.

IIASA is proud to announce that 11 researchers from across various IIASA programs have been named on the 2022 Highly Cited Researchers™ list from Clarivate.

Global carbon emissions in 2022 remain at record levels with no sign of the decrease that is urgently needed to limit warming to 1.5°C, according to the Global Carbon Project science team. If current emissions levels persist, there is now a 50% chance that global warming of 1.5°C will be exceeded in nine years.

The possibility of global temperatures exceeding the Paris Agreement 1.5°C target is rising every year. We already face the impact of climate change through often extreme weather conditions which threaten ecosystems and risk livelihoods. Yet, current plans to reach net-zero emissions targets do not go far enough to achieve the 1.5C target in time.

Alberto Fresolone winner of IDRiM 2022 Young Scientist Session Award.

An international team of researchers highlighted the inherent risk of relying too much on carbon removal technologies to limit climate change in a new study just published in Nature.

The Anniversary Fund of the Oesterreichische Nationalbank (OeNB) funded a new project on the Macroeconomic Effects of Digitalisation in Austria (W4.0) of the ASA-EM research group.

The Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use signed at COP26 represents a commitment by leaders representing over 85% of the world’s forests to halt and reverse deforestation and land degradation by 2030. But could the declaration’s ambitions be too ambiguous? An international team of researchers looked into this question.

IIASA recently instituted a new system of awards to recognize outstanding contributions towards meeting the strategic priorities and values of the institute. We are proud to announce that five IIASA research activities have been recognized in the inaugural 2022 award cycle.

The increase in emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere is only one of several serious global threats to our continued existence on Earth, and their reduction is at the core of international agreements like the Paris Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Together with Ukrainian colleagues, IIASA researchers took a novel approach to further the understanding of the planetary burden and its dynamics caused by emissions from human activity.

The frequency and severity of cyber attacks on critical infrastructure is a subject of concern for many governments, as are the costs associated with cyber security, making the efficient allocation of resources paramount. A new study proposes a framework featuring a more holistic picture of the cyber security landscape, along with a model that explicitly represents multiple dimensions of the potential impacts of successful cyber attacks.

A project by researchers from Princeton University and IIASA investigated how different climate scenarios and policy interventions could affect smallholder farmers in Nepal who stand to lose up to a quarter of their income by 2050 due to the effects of climate change.

IIASA is proud to announce that 12 researchers from across various IIASA programs have been named on the annual Highly Cited Researchers™ list from Clarivate.

A project to build a map of the world’s diverse food production systems and their dependencies is helping form a better understanding of the crucial elements and necessary transformative actions that govern agricultural systems, now and in the future.

Climate change may affect the production of maize (corn) and wheat by 2030 if current trends continue, according to a new international study that included researchers from IIASA, NASA, and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK). Maize crop yields are projected to decline by 24%, while wheat could potentially see growth of about 17%.

Sub-Saharan Africa is developing rapidly. With growing economies and increased trade, major road infrastructure plans have been developed for the region, which also hosts some of the world’s most unique and diverse ecosystems. New research looked into how roads might impact ecosystems in the region.

IIASA researchers and international colleagues explored the potential of using finely ground rock to help with the removal of CO₂ from the atmosphere on the road to achieving net-zero emissions and keeping global warming below 1.5°C.