Younha Kim
Research Scholar
Pollution Management Research Group
Energy, Climate, and Environment Program
Biography
Younha Kim is a Research Scholar in the Pollution Management Research Group within the Energy, Climate, and Environment Program at IIASA. She first came to IIASA in 2014 as a participant in the Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP) and returned to the institute in 2019. She received her master's and doctoral degrees in atmospheric environment from Konkuk University, South Korea, where her Ph.D. research focused on developing and applying the GAINS-Korea integrated assessment model for air quality policy assessment.Her research focuses on emission inventories, emission processing for atmospheric chemistry-transport modelling, air quality policy assessment, future emission scenarios, and the development and application of integrated assessment models. She has extensive experience in international collaborative research projects aimed at supporting evidence-based policymaking through scientific research and bridging the gap between science and policy.
Her current work focuses on improving volatile organic compound (VOC) emission modeling in the GAINS model, including VOC speciation, sector-specific mitigation options, and the role of VOCs in air quality assessment and future air quality projections. This work supports the assessment of VOC contributions to ozone and secondary organic aerosol formation and the design of effective air pollution control strategies. She co-leads AQNEA and coordinates activities under GUIDE, supporting integrated assessment modeling and policy-relevant air quality analysis across Northeast Asia and other regions.
Last update: 15 JUL 2026
Publications
Zhai, S., Jacob, D.J., Pendergrass, D.C., Colombi, N.K., Shah, V., Yang, L.H., Zhang, Q., Wang, S., Kim, H., Sun, Y., Choi, J.-S., Park, J.-S., Luo, G., Yu, F., Woo, J.-H., Kim, Y. , Dibb, J.E., Lee, T., Han, J.-S., Anderson, B.E., Li, K., & Liao, H. (2023). Coarse particulate matter air quality in East Asia: implications for fine particulate nitrate. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 23 (7) 4271-4281. 10.5194/acp-23-4271-2023.
Chong, H., Lee, S., Cho, Y., Kim, J., Koo, J.-H., Pyo Kim, Y., Kim, Y. , Woo, J.-H., & Hyun Ahn, D. (2023). Assessment of air quality in North Korea from satellite observations. Environment International 171 e107708. 10.1016/j.envint.2022.107708.
Jang, Y., Woo, J.-H., Kim, B., Kim, Y. , Kim, J., & Hu, H. (2022). Effects of GHGs and air pollutants control in Northeast Asia on future air quality over Korea. In: AGU Fall Meeting 2022, December 2022.
Kim, J., Park, J., Kim, B., Jang, Y., Kim, S., Choi, M., Kim, Y. , Hu, H., & Woo, J.-H. (2022). Long-term historical trends in air pollutant emissions in South Korea (2000~2018). In: AGU Fall Meeting 2022, December 2022.
Kumar, N., Johnson, J., Yarwood, G., Woo, J.-H., Kim, Y. , Park, R.J., Jeong, J.I., Kang, S., Chun, S., & Knipping, E. (2022). Contributions of domestic sources to PM2.5 in South Korea. Atmospheric Environment 287 e119273. 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2022.119273.