Page - 2 - in options, Volume winter 2016/2017

editorial 2 options + winter 2016/2017 options Professor Dr. Pavel Kabat Director General and CEO, IIASA www.iiasa.ac.at About Options Options magazine features recent IIASA research and activities. Executive editor Philippa Baumgartner Managing editor Katherine Leitzell Copy editor Daisy Brickhill Writers Philippa Baumgartner, Anneke Brand, Daisy Brickhill, Katherine Leitzell, Jane Palmer, Kerry  Skyring Expert reviewers Markus  Amann, Peter  Bednarik, Gloria  Benedikt, Peter  Burek, Sebastian  Busch, Ulf  Dieckmann, Tatiana  Ermolieva, Brian  Fath, Christian  Folberth, Nicklas  Forsell, Oskar  Franklin, Petr  Havlík,  Daniel  Huppmann, Matthias  Jonas, Samir  KC,  Zbigniew  Klimont, Nadejda  Komendantova, JoAnne  Linnerooth‑Bayer, Jun  Liu, Wolfgang  Lutz, Piotr  Magnuszewski, Rupert  Mazzucco, Aline  Mosnier, Luzma  Fabiola  Nava, Keywan  Riahi, Joeri Rogelj, Elena  Rovenskaya, Thomas  Schinko, Linda  See, Somayeh  Shadkam, Malgorzata  Smieszek, César  Terrer, Yoshihide  Wada, Sam  Hyun  Yoo © 2016 IIASA ZVR 524808900 Prepared by IIASA Communications Department Printed by Remaprint, Vienna Options is sent to over 6,500 policymakers, diplomats, and scientists. If you would like to update your subscription preferences or subscribe to Options or other IIASA publications, please visit www.iiasa.ac.at/keepintouch. Sections of Options may be reproduced with acknowledgment to IIASA. Please send a copy of any reproduced material. The views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily represent the positions of IIASA or its supporting organizations. About IIASA IIASA uses systems analysis to research the critical issues of  environmental, economic, and technological change we face today. Many of the most pressing problems of our times —climate change, food and water security, and biodiversity decline, to name just a few—are too complex to be solved by a single country or discipline. IIASA produces world‑class research that integrates problems, drivers, and impacts, helping countries around the world to produce effective, evidence‑based policies to tackle these challenges. IIASA produces + data, models, and research tools; + peer‑reviewed scientific papers; and + policy‑relevant information. IIASA helps + countries produce effective policy; + develop international research networks; and + support the next generation of scientists. IIASA is represented by its National Member Organizations in the following countries: Australia, Austria, Brazil, China, Egypt, Finland, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Republic of Korea, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States of America, Vietnam. IIASA A‑2361 Laxenburg, Austria Phone +43 2236 807 0 Fax +43 2236 71313 E-mail info@iiasa.ac.at Web www.iiasa.ac.at twitter.com/iiasavienna facebook.com/iiasa blog.iiasa.ac.at linkedin.com/company/iiasa‑vienna youtube.com/iiasalive flickr.com/iiasa I I A S A Demystifying our methods The cry “we’re tired of experts” has been reverberating around the globe in recent times. Many see scientists as divorced from reality, in their ivory tower, irrelevant to daily life. Using a language of their own, filled  with strange symbols, they mumble about dense and complex theory that is incomprehensible to most. But this theory is what underpins our work at IIASA, work that couldn’t be  more relevant to today’s world, aiming as it does to set us on course for a  sustainable, equitable society. In this issue of Options we have decided to  start  decoding this theory, and in our new Methods section (page  7) we will explore some of the institute’s methodological research, showing  how it forms  the basis of many IIASA models and tools. And we increasingly need these powerful tools. This November saw the  Paris  climate agreement, which was made in 2015, come into force. As the agreement becomes a reality, policymakers are grappling with aspects such as how to design and implement their climate commitments—IIASA researchers can provide invaluable help with this complex task (page  8). To reach sustainability we need, above all, a clear vision of our future, of the paths we might take and those we might hope to avoid. The Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (page  14) provide that vision, and the unique systems approach taken at IIASA has helped create and  refine  them, shaping them into a vital tool for the climate research community  around the world. Finally, in this issue of Options we would like to hear from you. Our readership survey is now open, so please go to www.iiasa.ac.at/readership to tell us what you like about the magazine, or what you would change. We welcome all your feedback. +