Network and collaborators

In 2018, 395 researchers from 50 countries worked at IIASA. In addition, IIASA has a large research network of collaborators, alumni, and visitors from different countries and disciplines.

alumni from 99 countries

advisory boards and steering committees incorporating IIASA researchers

externally funded projects where IIASA was lead or partner

research partners in member countries

IIASA Network 

  • Research network – IIASA has a worldwide network of collaborators who contribute to research by collecting, processing, and evaluating local and regional data that are integrated into IIASA models. The institute has 819 research partner institutions in member countries and works with research funders, academic institutions, policymakers, and individual researchers in national member organizations.
  • Visitors – In 2018, 1,605 associates and scholars visited IIASA to do research, collaborate with the institute’s research programs, and attend IIASA-organized events. Of these visitors, 1,079 were from member countries.
  • Meetings and events – In 2018, IIASA scientists hosted or coordinated 89 events worldwide. Of these, 64 were convened in Laxenburg, and 10 events were held in member countries. The events were attended by a total of 1,227 conference participants, with 819 being from member countries.
  • Alumni Association – IIASA has 4,570 alumni from 99 countries, of whom 25% are actively involved in the institute’s scientific activities and many are leaders in academia, government, and the private sector. The Alumni Association coordinates exchange within this network. In 2018, Alumnus William D. Nordhaus received the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his work integrating climate change into long-run macroeconomic analysis, which he started at IIASA.
  • Distinguished Visiting Fellows – In 2018, Heide Hackmann, Helga Kromp-Kolb, and Dame Lesley Anne Glover became IIASA Distinguished Visiting Fellows.

Strategic partnerships and collaborations

In 2018, IIASA signed a strategic partnership with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) during a visit of the OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría to IIASA in March. Building on a strong history of mutual collaboration a joint task force on systems thinking, anticipation, and resilience has been established, involving all IIASA research programs as well as almost all directorates of OECD. The main aim of the partnership is to combine the policy and action expertise of the OECD with the scientific and analytical excellence of IIASA to promote the use of systems thinking in policymaking through the development of methods and tools.

In addition, IIASA has signed a Memoranda of Understanding with the German University of Koblenz-Landau with the objective of advancing systems thinking in education, research, and capacity development. Also in 2018, IIASA joined the Global Energy Interconnection Development and Cooperation Organization (GEIDCO), which connects the world’s most important stakeholders in the energy sector.