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A SEP Orchestration Working Group has formally commenced under the ICONICS steering committee.

The SEP is pleased to call for papers to our Special Issue on “Socioeconomic futures frameworks for motivating actions for sustainability” in the journal Futures.

The SEP is envisaged as a re-evaluation of the architecture of the SSPs, guided by a community-based process. A number of activities are underway for 2026, and the scientific community is asked to provide critical input.

IIASA Director General Hans Joachim (John) Schellnhuber visited Barbados at the end of May to deepen engagement with government, academic, diplomatic, and international partners and explore new opportunities for collaboration on resilience, innovation, and sustainable development for Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

The Raiffa Academy Short Course equips participants with methods to structure evidence-based decisions and negotiations using decision science, negotiation analysis, game theory, and systems analysis. 

Throughout 2025, the Strategic Initiatives (SI) Program continued to foster close collaboration with IIASA’s National and Regional Member Organizations, supporting targeted, solution-oriented research aligned with national and global priorities. 

How can societies adapt to profound demographic, environmental, and social change while ensuring that no one is left behind? In 2025, the Population and Just Societies Program generated new evidence on aging, migration, labor markets, climate vulnerability, and the policies needed to build more inclusive and resilient societies. 

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. 

From poverty and resource extraction to climate policy and economic modeling, the Economic Frontiers Program explored some of the most pressing questions at the intersection of economy, society, and sustainability. Research conducted in 2025 challenged conventional assumptions and generated new perspectives on how progress can be measured and achieved.

Global migration has risen sharply from approximately 13 million people per year in 2000 to around 35 million people per year in 2023. This is according to a new dataset on human migration published in Nature by researchers from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), IIASA, and the University of Hong Kong.

IIASA Science Diplomacy Director and Head of Communications and External Relations, Susie Kitchens, will deliver the keynote address at the upcoming conference on Regional Engagement in the Era of Responsible Internationalization in Higher Education, co-organized by the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA) and Austria's Agency for Education and Internationalisation (OeAD) in Vienna.

Balancing the needs of people and nature is one of the defining challenges of our time. Throughout 2025, the Biodiversity and Natural Resources Program advanced research on how societies can pursue climate, biodiversity, and development goals while managing growing pressures on land, water, energy, and ecosystems.

As global challenges become increasingly interconnected, the Advancing Systems Analysis Program continued to develop innovative approaches for understanding complexity and supporting better decisions. In 2025, the program’s research revealed new insights into urban sustainability, resilience in an era of polycrisis, public health, and sustainable development.

Throughout 2025, IIASA expanded its international cooperation through new agreements, research initiatives, and high-level exchanges focused on sustainability, climate action, and systems science.

In 2025, IIASA reinforced its role as a trusted actor in science diplomacy by deepening engagement with international  institutions and supporting research‑informed policy dialogue across global platforms.

The Raiffa Academy, anchored at the International Institute of Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), develops and applies decision science, negotiation analysis, and game theory to support evidence-based policy and international negotiations. It trains scientists, policymakers, and advisers, convenes science-based dialogues, and builds a global network of practitioners.  

Social networks may help protect cognitive functioning in later life, particularly among older adults who are no longer working, according to a new IIASA-led study. Drawing on data from 27 European countries, the researchers found that social connections can help compensate for the loss of mentally stimulating interactions linked to work, with different types of relationships benefiting women and men.