Headline: News 2022

The turn of the year is a time of change - so too, in Potsdam. As of 1 January 2023, the IASS has been renamed as the Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS) and embedded into the administrative structures of Helmholtz Centre Potsdam – GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, where it will conduct its research under the umbrella of the Helmholtz Association.

As 2022 draws to a close, the IASS bids farewell to Ortwin Renn, one of the Institute’s two scientific directors, who will retire at the end of the year. At a joyful and moving celebration, staff at the IASS paid tribute to Renn’s achievements as an outstanding researcher and leader.

Kenya is a climate and renewable energy frontrunner in the sub-Saharan region. The country is committed to decarbonisation and currently aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 32 % by 2030, relative to the business-as-usual scenario. A new IASS Policy Brief examines key policy options to expand Kenya’s renewable energy capacities and improve energy access and security.

Jordan’s energy transition has been rapid and ambitious: in 2021 renewables accounted for 26% of electricity production in Jordan, up from less than 1% in 2014. However, progress has stalled recently, largely due to conflicts between Jordan’s renewable energy goals and the costs of fossil fuel over-capacity for the state-owned electricity transmission and distribution company NEPCO. A new IASS Policy Brief considers how regional cooperation, stakeholder participation, and electricity market reforms could put Jordan's energy transition back on track.

The General Assembly of the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies e.V. convened for its annual meeting on 24 November 2022. As part of the legal integration of the IASS into the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, effective from 1 January 2023, the General Assembly voted to approve the signing of the transfer agreement by the Institute’s Board of Directors. The General Assembly also adopted a resolution to liquidate the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies e.V., which transferred its research activities to the GFZ on 31 December 2022.