Rapid global transformations towards net zero CO2emissions
Keywan Riahi
Program Director, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA）■Abstract
The presentation is focusing on transformation pathways consistent with the long-termgoal of the UN Paris Agreement to hold warming well below 2°C and pursue limiting it to
1.5°C. The pathways illustrate the paramount importance of rapid near-term transformation
towards net-zero emissions that will have significant long-term gains for the economy(even without considering the benefits of avoided climate impacts). Limiting the overshootof the temperature goals has multiple benefits, as it reduces reliance on global net negative
CO2 emissions; it is economically more attractive over the long term; and involves lower
climate risks. The talk will further identify possible alternative configurations of net-zero
CO2 emissions systems and the distinct roles of different sectors and regions in order tobalance emissions sources and sinks. In this context, the importance of demand-side
measures cannot be overemphasized. It is the demand in service sectors which ‘sizes’ theoverall mitigation challenge. Low-Energy-Demand scenarios illustrate how the historicaltrajectory of ever-rising energy demand leading to ever aggravating resource andenvironmental impacts can be reversed driven by technological, organizational andbehavioral innovations in all aspects of energy end-use. Dramatic transformations in theway we move around, heat and cool our homes, and buy and use devices and appliances
can help raise living standards in the Global South to meet, even exceed the UN Sustainable
Development Goals, while also remaining within the 1.5°C target set by the 2015 ParisAgreement, and without relying on unproven and uncertain negative emissions
technologies (CO2 removal from the atmosphere by technological means).
■Biography
Keywan Riahi is the Director of the IIASA Program on Energy, Climate, andEnvironment. He is also visiting professor at the Graz University of Technology (TU Graz),a fellow at the Payne Institute of the Colorado School of Mines, and an external faculty
member at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) at the University of Amsterdam.
His main research interests are long-term patterns of technological change andeconomic development, particularly evolution of the energy system. His present research
focuses on energy-related sources of global change, and on future development andresponse strategies related to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Dr. Riahi’s current projects, among others, include an EU-ERC Synergy Grant called
GENIE on negative emissions technologies and 'Exploring National and Global Actions toreduce Greenhouse gas Emissions (ENGAGE)'.
He is a member of the Scientific Steering Committee of the Integrated Assessment

Modeling Consortium (IAMC) and has co-led and coordinated a variety of different
international community research efforts, including for example the development of theRCP-SSP framework for the integrated assessment of climate change, or recently the EUfunded research project CD-LINKS (Linking Climate and Development Policies-Leveraging
International Networks and Knowledge Sharing). His work within international modelingcomparison projects, such as Stanford-based Energy Modeling Forum, focuses on climate
and energy policies for rapid transformation toward environmental, economic and social
sustainability. He is regular advisor to national government organizations, energy andenvironment ministries, and the Industry.
Dr. Riahi has been appointed as a coordinating lead author in Working Group III of theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report (chapter
three on mitigation pathways compatible with long-term goals). He has served as leadauthor and review editor to various international assessments, such as the Global EnergyAssessment (GEA), The World in 2050 (TWI2050), and other IPCC reports, including theThird, Fourth, and Fifth Assessment Reports, the Special Report on Emissions Scenarios(SRES), the Special Report on CO2 Capture and Storage (SRCCS), and the Special Report
on Renewable Energy (SRREN).
Clarivate Analytics (formerly Thomson Reuters) has repeatedly acknowledged Riahi asa Highly Cited Researcher Worldwide in two categories between 2016 and 2020.