About IIASA

Founded in 1972, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) is an international research organization that conducts policy-oriented research into problems that are too large or too complex to be solved by a single country or academic discipline:

• problems like climate change that have a global reach and can be resolved only by international cooperative action, or
• problems of common concern to many countries that need to be addressed at the national level, such as energy security, population aging, and sustainable development.

Located in Austria near Vienna, IIASA is sponsored by its National Member Organizations in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas. It is independent and completely unconstrained by political or national self-interest.

IIASA's Research
IIASA’s research investigates the critical issues of global environmental, economic, technological, and social change that we face in the twenty-first century. The researchers, some 200 mathematicians, social scientists, natural scientists, economists, and engineers, develop assessment and decision-support methodologies, global databases, and analytical tools to study the issues. IIASA concentrates its research efforts within three core research themes:

• Energy and Climate Change;
• Food and Water;
• Poverty and Equity.

Within these themes are programs that define the major research areas in which IIASA does its work. Other IIASA initiatives underscore the basic research program, i.e., Exploratory Projects, the Young Scientists Summer Program, and Postdoctoral Research.