Caroline Zimm

Caroline Zimm is a Research Scholar in the Transition to New Technologies Program, where she works closely with Prof. Dr. Nakicenovic. Currently she works on the The World in 2050 (TWI2050) initiative. Her research is concerned with the diffusion of technologies and policies for sustainable development.

Prior to joining IIASA in 2014, Ms. Zimm worked in development cooperation and on consulting projects in the field of rural energy supply, energy access and climate change. She held positions with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), a private consulting firm, and the German Development Agency (GIZ) where she was based in Cambodia and India.

She holds a master’s degree in environmental and resource management from the University of Applied Life Sciences Vienna - where she majored in renewable energies, a diploma (MBA. equiv.) in international business administration from the University for Economics and Business Administration Vienna, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Vienna. She is currently a PhD candidate at the energy economics group of the University of Technology in Vienna.


Last update: 04-FEB-2019

Wilson C , Grubler A , Bento N, Healey S, De Stercke S, & Zimm C (2020). Granular technologies to accelerate decarbonization. Science 368 (6486): 36-39. DOI:10.1126/science.aaz8060.

Lanzi E, Agrawala S, Dellink R, Lutz W, Zimm C , Nakicenovic N , Fritz S, & Rao N (2020). Developing Pathways to Sustainability: Fulfilling Human Needs and Aspirations while Maintaining Human Life Support Systems. In: Systemic Thinking for Policy Making: The Potential of Systems Analysis for Addressing Global Policy Challenges in the 21st Century. pp. 39-48 Paris, France: New Approaches to Economic Challenges, OECD Publishing. ISBN 978-92-64-49456-510.1787/879c4f7a-en.

Zimm C , Goldemberg J, Nakicenovic N , & Busch S (2019). Is the renewables transformation a piece of cake or a pie in the sky? Energy Strategy Reviews 26: e100401. DOI:10.1016/j.esr.2019.100401.

TWI2050 - The World in 2050 (2019). The Digital Revolution and Sustainable Development: Opportunities and Challenges. Report prepared by the World in 2050 initiative. Laxenburg, Austria: IIASA. ISBN 978-3-7045-0155-4 DOI:10.22022/TNT/05-2019.15913.

Zimm C (2019). Methodological issues in measuring international inequality in technology ownership and infrastructure service use. Development Studies Research 6 (1): 92-105. DOI:10.1080/21665095.2019.1605533.

Zimm C & Nakicenovic N (2019). What are the implications of the Paris Agreement for inequality? Climate Policy: 1-10. DOI:10.1080/14693062.2019.1581048.

Johnson N, Burek P , Byers E , Falchetta G, Flörke M, Fujimori S, Havlik P, Hejazi M, et al. (2019). Integrated Solutions for the Water-Energy-Land Nexus: Are Global Models Rising to the Challenge? Water 11 (11): no. 2223. DOI:10.3390/w11112223.

Nakicenovic N & Wilson C (2019). Transformations towards zero-carbon development pathways. In: Emissions Gap Report 2019. pp. 39-45 Nairobi: UNEP. ISBN 978-92-807-3766-0

TWI2050 - The World in 2050 (2018). Transformations to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Report prepared by The World in 2050 initiative. International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA). Laxenburg, Austria. ISBN 978-3-7045-0154-7 DOI:10.22022/TNT/07-2018.15347.

Zimm C , Sperling F, & Busch S (2018). Identifying Sustainability and Knowledge Gaps in Socio-Economic Pathways Vis-à-Vis the Sustainable Development Goals. Economies 6 (2): p. 20. DOI:10.3390/economies6020020.

Nakicenovic N & Zimm C (2017). New technological solutions for the Sustainable Development Goals and beyond. Environmental Scientist 26 (3): 68-73.

Nakicenovic N , Rockstroem J, Gaffney O, & Zimm C (2017). Global Commons in the Anthropocene: World Development on a Stable and Resilient Planet. In: IIASA Institutional Evaluation 2017, 27 February-1 March 2017, IIASA, Laxenburg, Austria.

Zimm C & Nakicenovic N (2017). Carbon Lorenz Curves revisited: Do the Paris Agreement and its Nationally Determined Contributions reflect a more equitable future emissions pathway? In: IEWT 2017 10. Internationale Energiewirtschaftstagung "Klimaziele 2050: Chance für einen Paradigmenwechsel?", 15-17 February 2017, TU Wien, Vienna.

Nakicenovic N & Zimm C (2017). Back to the Future: The Role of Quantitative Scenarios and Narratives in Understanding Transformation to Sustainability. In: Future Scenarios of Global Cooperation – Practices and Challenges. Eds. Dahlhaus, N. & Weißkopf, D., pp. 24-34 Duisburg, Germany: Käte Hamburger Kolleg / Centre for Global Cooperation Research. 10.14282/2198-0403-GD-14.

Nakicenovic N , Rockström J, Gaffney O, & Zimm C (2016). Global Commons in the Anthropocene: World Development on a Stable and Resilient Planet. IIASA Working Paper. IIASA, Laxenburg, Austria: WP-16-019