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Deadline: until filled
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01-2025
APPLY
01-2025

Researcher in Integrated Assessment Modeling

The Integrated Assessment and Climate Change (IACC) Research Group  within the IIASA Energy, Climate, and Environment (ECE) Program seeks a talented researcher to advance the integration of climate change impacts and adaptation measures into the MESSAGEix integrated assessment modeling framework.

Background

The ECE Program at IIASA hosts one of the world’s leading global Integrated Assessment Modeling (IAM) teams, and seeks to deepen the understanding of rapid, just, and feasible systems transformations toward environmental, social, and economic sustainability. Interdisciplinary teams within ECE use these and complementary methods to study trade-offs and synergies between multiple policy priorities and objectives, typically across multiple sectors and scales (global, regional, national and subnational). ECE’s scientific outputs inform international and national policy efforts related to climate change (e.g., implementation of the Paris Climate Agreement) and sustainable development (e.g., pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals).

The role

The successful candidate will contribute to developing modeling methods and data to study the characteristics of transitions towards GHG neutrality and climate resilience. This research will include, but is not limited to:

  • Development and application of the MESSAGEix-Nexus model, the open source MESSAGEix modeling framework, and related software and data sets.
  • Complementary, quantitative analysis of the climate impacts on the water, energy and land sectors, from both supply and demand perspectives, and considering chronic and acute impacts, and development of novel methodologies to represent impacts in MESSAGEix.
  • Analysis of sectoral adaptation options and development of climate adaptation scenarios, and their incorporation into MESSAGEix.
  • Design and execution of model-to-model linkages, such as between sectoral models and IAMs.

As well as further developing the MESSAGEix framework, this position offers the opportunity to collaborate with a team of international scientists and work with international project teams on projects such as SPARCCLE and PRISMA.

Main tasks and responsibilities

  • Perform in-depth literature reviews of climate impacts on relevant sectors, understand key modes of impact.
  • Implement the key climate impact effects within MESSAGEix data and model structures, through statistical methods to collapse high-dimensional data and the development of simplified statistical and process-based models.
  • Research existing and novel adaptation approaches and scenarios, and understand and propose methods for their implementation in IAMs.
  • Contribute to the software development of the global MESSAGEix-NEXUS model, the open source MESSAGEix modeling framework, and related software tools and data sets.
  • Analyze, process, and utilize large-scale panel, geospatial and gridded datasets.
  • Investigate, prepare, and analyze integrated assessment model scenario campaigns in conjunction with senior researchers.
  • Develop and document version-controlled collaborative modelling code that allows to re-process data and analyze datasets and model results.
  • Maintain and disseminate relevant datasets according to FAIR data principles.
  • Publish relevant results in peer-reviewed journals and actively engage in dissemination efforts such as scientific conferences and workshops, stakeholder, and policy events.
  • Contribute to ongoing and future projects and related deliverables, reports, stakeholder communication and capacity building activities.

Skills, qualifications and experience

  • A master's, PhD or equivalent degree in a field related to integrated assessment modeling including natural sciences, economics, engineering, environmental sciences or mathematics.
  • Demonstrated experience in tools and systems used by the ECE program (cf. MESSAGEix documentation) including
    • Experience in a modern programming language, preferably Python, is essential. Short-listed candidates will need to provide code samples and may be asked to perform a programming test
    • Experience with an optimization framework (e.g., GAMS, Pyomo, JuMP, etc.) is strongly preferred
    • Experience with integrated assessment, energy systems, water resource systems and hydrological modeling is an asset.
  • Knowledge of and experience with GIS data, and gridded climate and hydrological model data.
  • Knowledge of and experience with high performance computing and computational optimization problems or working in training machine learning models is an asset.
  • Demonstrated ability to contribute to open-source projects, data provision and code-development, using git and GitHub.
  • Demonstrated ability to develop, collaborate on, and publish scientific research through peer-reviewed publications.
  • A degree of flexibility and willingness to travel.
  • Fluency in English and excellent presentation skills.
  • IIASA offers an interdisciplinary and international workplace, and the possibility to interact with researchers of different nationalities, with strong ties to a world-wide network of research institutions engaged in environmental systems research. The successful candidate must be able to work in, and have respect for, an intercultural environment, and IIASA core values.
 

Appointment terms

The successful candidate should be available to take up the position as soon as possible in 2025. We offer an initial fixed-term, full-time employment contract for one year, with the possibility for extension thereafter.

Eligible applicants wishing to work part-time hours may be considered.

The place of work is IIASA in Laxenburg, near Vienna Austria.

The successful candidate will be appointed in accordance with  the IIASA profiles for research careers. 

We offer

  • The possibility to contribute to environmental sciences for sustainability and global wellbeing.
  • Career development perspectives.
  • An international atmosphere and pleasant working environment in a historic market town surrounded by green areas.
  • An attractive salary which is exempt from income tax in Austria and negotiable, based on the qualifications, skills and experience of the selected individual but at least
    EUR 41,020.00 for R1 Researchers
    EUR 53,451.00 for R2 Research Scholars

Salaries quoted are:

  • Gross per annum (subject to deductions for health insurance and/or social security).
  • Not directly comparable with other employers in Austria, due to the unique legal status and privileges granted to IIASA.
  • Subject to the principle of income aggregation (Progressionsvorbehalt in German).

Other benefits

  • Educational subsidies for children of school age enrolled in private schools in Austria.
  • A generous annual leave entitlement.
  • Relocation allowances and paid home leave for employees hired from international locations.
  • Assistance for newcomers to Austria with visa, work and residency permit applications.
  • Support finding accommodation in Austria. 

Further details here. 

About IIASA

IIASA is committed to a working environment that promotes equality, diversity, tolerance and inclusion within its workforce. This is reflected in our  IIASA core values and the IIASA Gender Equality Plan (GEP). We encourage qualified candidates from all religious, ethnic, and social backgrounds to apply. In the case that candidates are equally qualified, preference will be given to applicants from countries where IIASA has a  Member Organization.

Further Information

For further information about this opportunity please contact:

Ed Byers, IACC Senior Research Scholar
or
Volker Krey, IACC  Research Group Leader

For general information about working at IIASA, please contact: recruitment@iiasa.ac.at

 

Applications

 

To apply for this opportunity, you will need to provide the following documents in English: 

  • A cover letter outlining your motivation for and fit to the position.
  • A detailed Curriculum Vitae.
  • An example of an existing software (coding) project or application.
  • The names, addresses (including e-mail), and telephone numbers of two reference givers.

     

 Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position has been filled.

Deadline for receipt of applications: until filled
APPLY

Applications

 

To apply for this opportunity, you will need to provide the following documents in English: 

  • A cover letter outlining your motivation for and fit to the position.
  • A detailed Curriculum Vitae.
  • An example of an existing software (coding) project or application.
  • The names, addresses (including e-mail), and telephone numbers of two reference givers.

     

 Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position has been filled.

Deadline for receipt of applications: until filled
APPLY