Understanding climate change and its impacts is a huge task that no institution or country can tackle alone. PIK is part of a global network of scientific and academic institutions working on questions of global environmental change. Members of PIK contribute to numerous expert bodies and scientific networks, including the following important partners.
Leibniz Association
PIK is a member of the Leibniz Association, a union of German non-university research institutes that range in focus from natural, engineering and environmental sciences to economics, spatial and social sciences and the humanities. Leibniz institutes address issues of social, economic and ecological relevance.
Leibniz Research Alliances
PIK scientists participate in several Leibniz Research Alliances and Networks.
University Cooperations
PIK maintains strong connections to the universities in Berlin and Brandenburg through several joint professorships and the involvement of PIK scientists in university courses and the supervision of young scientists.
University courses and professorships
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change. PIK scientists are actively involved in the IPCC assessment process, contributing to its Assessment Reports and several Special Reports.
In IPCC's sixth assessment cycle (2016-2022) PIK researchers contributed their expertise to the Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C (2017), the Special Report on Climate Change and Land (2019), and as chapter authors for the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6).
Prof. Gunnar Luderer and Prof. Felix Creutzig are lead authors for the Special Report on Cities, due to be published in 2027. Nine PIK experts have been named as lead authors for the forthcoming Seventh Assessment Report (AR7).
The Earth League
The Earth League is an international alliance of prominent scientists from world‐class research institutions, who work together to respond to some of the most pressing issues faced by humankind, as a consequence of climate change, depletion of natural resources, land degradation and water scarcity.
Professor Johan Rockstöm co-chairs the Earth League. Prof. Ottmar Edenhofer and Prof. Wolfgang Lucht are Fellows. PIK is additionally involved in the EarthDoc network of next generation scholars.
The Earth Commission
The Earth Commission is a group of leading scientists in the field of Earth systems research, whose mission is to help define science-based goals for sustainably managing systems like land, water, and biodiversity. PIK Director Johan Rockström is a Co-Chair of the Commission together with Fatima Denton (UNU-INRA).
Food System Economics Commission
Together with the Food and Land Use Coalition (FOLU) and EAT, PIK has convened an independent academic commission to deliver a state-of-the-art scientific assessment on the economics of the transition to healthy, inclusive and sustainable food systems. The Food System Economics Commission (FSEC) will provide integrated analysis of health, food, people and planet that equips leading political and economic decision makers with the high-level insights and tools required to shift global food and land use systems in order to meet the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Commission is a joint initiative by PIK’s Directors: Johan Rockström initiated the project as principal together with Dr. Gunhild Stordalen (EAT) and Jeremy Oppenheim (FOLU/SIQ), and Ottmar Edenhofer serves as one of three FSEC Co-Chairs. They work in tandem with PIK department head Hermann Lotze-Campen, who serves as Commissioner, and working group leader Alexander Popp, who leads an analytical workstream within the FSEC Secretariat. Please find more details about FSEC here.
German Advisory Council on the Environment (SRU)
The German Advisory Council on the Environment (SRU) has been one of the first expert advisory bodies on German environmental policy and was established by the German government in 1972.
Its mission is to describe and assess environmental conditions, problems, and political trends and to point out solutions and preventive measures.
Professor Wolfgang Lucht was appointed to the SRU as an expert in earth system science and sustainability research in 2016.
German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina
The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina) scientifically reviews and addresses key issues of prospective significance to society. Its findings are conveyed to policy makers and the public alike and are nationally and internationally advocated.
PIK Directors Ottmar Edenhofer and Johan Rockström are members of the Leopoldina and contribute to the work of its committees.
Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN)
PIK is actively involved as a member of SDSN Germany, represented by Prof. Hermann Lotze-Campen. Scientific contributions relate to the implementation of the UN's Agenda 2030 with a focus on the Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs.
Geo.X
PIK is a member of Geo.X, the geoscientific competence network in Berlin and Potsdam. The network integrates universities and non-university research institutions. Geo.X partners are committed to a close cooperation in research, teaching, sharing joint infrastructure, internationalization and knowledge transfer.
Friends of PIK
The Society of Friends and Promoters of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research e.V. (PIK) was founded in 2002. Its purpose is to support science and research at PIK and to promote the image of PIK as an international institution.
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