U.S. Committee for the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)

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CollinsOISE-0738129This award provides support to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences to carry out its responsibilities asthe United States National Member Organization (NMO) of the International Institute for AppliedSystems Analysis (IIASA). These responsibilities take two forms: participating in governance of theInstitute through participation in the IIASA Council and direct interaction with the organization; andfacilitating and encouraging U.S. interest in IIASA's activities. The Board on InternationalOrganizations (BISO) of the National Research Council (NRC) executes these responsibilities through theU.S. Committee for IIASA, chaired by Professor Simon Levin of Princeton.IIASA was established in 1972 as a multilateral, non-governmental research institution devoted tointerdisciplinary, policy-oriented research. At IIASA, multidisciplinary, international teams ofresearchers conduct research on issues related to environmental, technological, and economic aspects ofglobal change, including energy and technology, population, and natural resources. The Institute thusserves as a neutral forum for sustained investigation and discussion of global and international issues. Itis located in Laxenburg, Austria, near Vienna.The intellectual merit of the proposal consists of the work by the U.S. NMO, in collaboration withinterested U.S. researchers and Government agencies, to formulate U.S. views regarding IIASA'sresearch, budget, and administration. This helps to insure the integrity of the Institute and guides theIIASA research program in ways that will maintain its quality and its relevance to U.S. research andpolicy concerns. The NMO works to broaden the impact of the Institute and its work by serving as aliaison to the U.S. science, technology, and policy communities, with the goal of increasing participationin and awareness of IIASA by Americans in academia, government, business, and non-governmentalorganizations (NGOs). This includes recruiting for and funding IIASA's Young Scientists SummerProgram for advanced graduate students; helping to find suitable candidates for IIASA's job vacancies;serving as the hub of a national network of interested scholars and policymakers; and helping IIASA tofind opportunities to participate in national policy debates.The chairman of the U.S. Committee represents the U.S. NMO at IIASA's Council meetings. TheCouncil is composed of representatives from the 16 NMO's; each NMO country pays an annualmembership contribution. The U.S. Council member was elected to a three-year term as Chairman of theCouncil in November 2003, and he works with the Director of IIASA, the IIASA Council ProgramCommittee, and the IIASA Science Advisory Committee to guide and strengthen the IIASA researchprogram. The U.S. national committee carries out an annual review of IIASA's research progress,soliciting comments from academic, government, and other experts in the U.S. scientific community.