Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies

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Research Institute for Sustainability
Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies logo.svg
Category Research institute
Legal structureRegistered association
Established2 February 2009
LocationPotsdam, Germany
LeadershipKatja Carson (Administration), Prof. Dr Mark Lawrence, Prof. Dr Patrizia Nanz, Prof. Dr Ortwin Renn
Fields of researchenergy transitions, emerging technologies, climate change, air quality, systemic risks, governance and participation, cultures of transformation in the Anthropocene, and sustainable development
Funding mixFederal Government (85%), State of Brandenburg (15%)
Staffapprox. 120
Homepage www.rifs-potsdam.de/en

The Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS) in Potsdam, previously known as the Institute for Sustainability Studies (IASS), is part of the Helmholtz Association, with the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences. RIFS collaborates with a range of stakeholders to address sustainability challenges including researchers, governmental bodies, private sectors, and civil society. Its research covers areas such as climate change mitigation, sustainable governance, and cultural transformations in the Anthropocene. Additionally, RIFS promotes knowledge exchange through its Fellow Program, strengthening its sustainability initiatives.

Contents

Organization

The RIFS currently employs approximately 120 people from over 30 countries. [1] In 2019 the Board of Directors was composed of the Institute's three Scientific Directors – Mark G. Lawrence, Patrizia Nanz and Ortwin Renn – and its Head of Administration, Jakob Meyer. [2] The RIFS receives funding from the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (85%) and the Federal State of Brandenburg (15%). The Institute's research program currently spans five areas: Democratic Transformations; Systemic Interdependencies: Nature, Technology, Society; Perceptions, Values, Orientation; Energy Systems and Societal Change; Governance for the Environment and Society. These research areas are supported in their work by a cross-cutting research area tasked with facilitating dialogue between science, policy-makers, and civil society actors. [3]

History

The IASS (Now the RIFS) was founded in Potsdam, Germany, on 2 February 2009. Klaus Töpfer was the Institute's founding director. He led the Institute as its executive director until September 2015, together with scientific directors Carlo Rubbia (June 2010 – May 2015) and Mark G. Lawrence (from October 2011). [4]

In January 2023, the IASS merged with the Helmholtz Association, Germany’s largest scientific organization, and was incorporated into the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), while retaining its scientific independence. The GFZ is Germany’s national research center for the study of the geosphere. Since then, the IASS has renamed itself the Research Institute for Sustainability.

Publications

The RIFS uses a number of publications formats to disseminate its findings and policy recommendations. These include:

Other publication formats include articles in scholarly journals, statements, monographs, and edited volumes. The institute also hosts a blog on its website.

Related Research Articles

The Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres is the largest scientific organisation in Germany. It is a union of 18 scientific-technical and biological-medical research centers. The official mission of the Association is "solving the grand challenges of science, society and industry". Scientists at Helmholtz therefore focus research on complex systems which affect human life and the environment. The namesake of the association is the German physiologist and physicist Hermann von Helmholtz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Klaus Töpfer</span> German politician (1938–2024)

Klaus Töpfer was a German politician (CDU) and environmental politics expert. From 1998 to 2006 he was executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The International Continental Scientific Drilling Program is a multinational program to further and fund geosciences in the field of continental scientific drilling. Scientific drilling is a critical tool in understanding of Earth processes and structure. It provides direct insight into Earth processes and critically tests geological models. Results obtained from drilling projects at critical sites can be applied to other areas worldwide. It is, therefore, believed that international cooperation in continental scientific drilling is an essential component for a responsible management strategy for the Earth's natural resources and environment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Potsdam</span> University in the German city of Potsdam

The University of Potsdam is a public university in Potsdam, capital of the state of Brandenburg, northeastern Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">German Institute for Economic Research</span> Research institute

The German Institute for Economic Research, or, more commonly DIW Berlin, is a economic research institute in Germany, involved in economic research and policy advice. According to Repec, it is among the top-10 percent of non-profit economic research institutions worldwide. Financed with public grants from the Berlin Senate Department for Economics, Technology and Research and the Federal Department for Economics and Technology. DIW Berlin was founded in 1925 as the Institute for Business Cycle Research and took its current name in 1943.

The Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces is located in Potsdam-Golm Science Park in Golm, Potsdam, Germany. It was founded in 1990 as a successor of the Institute for Physical Chemistry and for Organic Chemistry, both in Berlin-Adlershof, and for Polymer Chemistry in Teltow. In 1999, it transferred to newly constructed extension facilities in Golm. It is one of 80 institutes in the Max Planck Society (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft).

The Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology is a German research institute for molecular plant physiology, based in the Golm district of Potsdam, Brandenburg. Founded on 1 January 1994, the MPIMP focuses on the study of the dynamics of plant metabolism and how that relates to the entire plant system. The institution is one of the 80 institutes in the Max Planck Society (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft).

The International Generic Sample Number or IGSN is a persistent identifier for sample. As an active persistent identifier it can be resolved through the Handle System. The system is used in production by the System for Earth Sample Registration (SESAR), Geoscience Australia, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation Mineral Resources, Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC), University of Bremen MARUM, German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), IFREMER Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer, Korea Institute of Geoscience & Mineral Resources (KIGAM), and University of Kiel. Other organisations are preparing the introduction of the IGSN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research</span> German research institute

The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research is a German government-funded research institute addressing crucial scientific questions in the fields of global change, climate impacts, and sustainable development. Ranked among the top environmental think tanks worldwide, it is one of the leading research institutions and part of a global network of scientific and academic institutions working on questions of global environmental change. It is a member of the Leibniz Association, whose institutions perform research on subjects of high relevance to society.

The Karl-Scheel-Preis is an award given annually by the Physikalische Gesellschaft zu Berlin, a regional association of the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft, for outstanding scientific work. The prize was established through an endowment by the German physicist Karl Scheel and his wife Melida. Recipients are awarded with the Karl-Scheel Medal and 5.000 Euros. The Karl-Scheel Medal in bronze was designed by the German sculptor Richard Scheibe and has a diameter of 12 cm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albert Einstein Science Park</span> Research institute in Germany

The Albert Einstein Science Park is located on the Telegrafenberg hill in Potsdam, Germany. The park was named after the physicist Albert Einstein. The best known buildings in the park are the Einstein Tower, an astrophysical observatory that was built to perform checks of Einstein's theory of General Relativity; and the Great Refractor of Potsdam, which today belong to the Astrophysical Institute Potsdam. These buildings, along with various astronomical, meteorological, and geophysical observatories were integrated into an English-style country garden.

The Bio-economy Research and Technology Council advises the government of Germany on measures to promote the bioeconomy in Germany. The Council makes policy recommendations to policy makers, science and industry in the corresponding fields of research and action. The members of the Council are respected senior figures drawn from across the fields of science.

The Deutsches Klima-Konsortium e. V. is located in Berlin, Germany, and represents the leading players of German climate and climate impact research encompassing 26 renowned research organisations. The federation is also an important international partner acting as a guidepost, strategic partner, project partner and information broker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences</span>

The GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences, or just GFZ, is the national research center for Earth Sciences in Germany, located on the Telegrafenberg in Potsdam, in the German federal state of Brandenburg, and is part of the Helmholtz Association of National Research Centres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wolfgang Kröger</span>

Wolfgang Kröger has been full professor of Safety Technology at the ETH Zurich since 1990 and director of the Laboratory of Safety Analysis simultaneously. Before being elected Founding Rector of International Risk Governance Council (IRGC) in 2003, he headed research in nuclear energy and safety at the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI). After his retirement early 2011 he became the Executive Director of the newly established ETH Risk Center. He has both Swiss and German citizenship and lives in Kilchberg, Zürich. His seminal work lies in the general area of reliability, risk and vulnerability analysis of large-scale technical systems, initially single complicated systems like nuclear power plants of different types and finally complex engineered networks like power supply systems, the latter coupled to other critical infrastructure and controlled by cyber-physical systems. He is known for his continuing efforts to advance related frameworks, methodology, and tools, to communicate results including uncertainties as well as for his successful endeavor in stimulating trans-boundary cooperation to improve governance of emerging systemic risks. His contributions to shape and operationalize the concept of sustainability and - more recently - the concept of resilience are highly valued. Furthermore, he is in engaged in the evaluation of smart clean, secure, and affordable energy systems and future technologies, including new ways of exploiting nuclear energy. The development and certification of cooperative automated vehicles, regarded as a cornerstone of future mobility concepts, are matter of growing interest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrizia Nanz</span>

Patrizia Nanz is a political scientist and an expert in public participation and democratic innovations. She has provided expertise to businesses, state agencies, and governments in various European countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Günter Blöschl</span> Austrian hydrologist, engineer and academic

Professor Günter Blöschl is an Austrian hydrologist, engineer and academic.

Liane G. Benning is a biogeochemist studying mineral-fluid-microbe interface processes. She is a Professor of Interface Geochemistry at the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences in Potsdam, Germany. Her team studies various processes that shape the Earth Surface with a special focus on two aspects: the nucleation, growth and crystallisation of mineral phases from solution and the role, effects and interplay between microbes and minerals in extreme environments. She is also interested in the characterisation of these systems, developing in situ and time resolved high resolution imaging and spectroscopic techniques to follow microbe-mineral reactions as they occur.

Mark G. Lawrence is an American atmospheric scientist whose research focuses on a range of sustainable development topics at the science policy and science-society interface. He is scientific director at the Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS) in Potsdam (former Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies in Potsdam.

Bettina Hörstrup is a German lawyer and administrative director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) since 2020. Together with the scientific directors Ottmar Edenhofer and Johan Rockström, she forms the board of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

References

  1. IASS Activities 2012–2013, p. 72.
  2. "The Directors". Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS).
  3. "IASS Research".
  4. "Klaus Töpfer Bids Farewell: IASS Established as a Platform for Dialogue between Science and Society - IASS Potsdam".

52°24′21.9″N13°4′24.4″E / 52.406083°N 13.073444°E / 52.406083; 13.073444