Capacity building

IIASA recognizes the central importance of capacity building and education; activities that strengthen the knowledge and skills of researchers all over the world. This benefits IIASA in the long term by attracting and training new research talent; it can also benefit member countries through equipping their countries’ up-and-coming researchers with the skills needed to aid decision making in a time of global change.

The capacity building activity with the highest profile is the Young Scientists Summer Program, which welcomes PhD students from IIASA member countries and beyond every year. In addition, IIASA has offered increased capacity-building services to its member organizations. For example, 2015 saw the third successful year of the Southern African Young Scientists Summer Program, a regional expansion of the YSSP. The Postdoctoral Program, combined with several special fellowships and awards for mid-career scientists also nurtures young talent.

Young Scientists Summer Program 2015

The widely praised Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP) welcomes students from IIASA member countries and beyond every year. The program allows PhD students to work alongside distinguished IIASA researchers for three months, gaining new insight into their own field of research as well as those of the institute. This mentoring is complemented by a program that includes lectures, seminars, and workshops to broaden participants’ perspectives and skills. More

IIASA Postdoctoral Scholars 2015

Every year IIASA provides full funding for several postdoctoral researchers. In 2015, eleven early-career researchers benefited from this, along with three postdoctoral scholars who worked on special projects within the Evolution and Ecology Program (EEP). These scientists get the chance to work in a rich international, interdisciplinary environment with access to the worldwide network of IIASA collaborators. More

Southern African Young Scientists Summer Program 2014-2015

IIASA and its South African National Member Organization—the National Research Foundation—came together to produce the first regional expansion of the Young Scientists Summer Program in 2012. Hosted by the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein in South Africa, the Southern African YSSP ran from December to February for three years. More


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Last edited: 25 January 2016

International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)
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