ICONICS

Webinars

Upcoming webinar:

The International Committee On New Integrated Climate change assessment Scenarios (ICONICS) is pleased to announce Launching the Scenario Evolution Process Webinar on 12 February 2026.  

Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) have provided a widely adopted foundation for climate-centric research, yet their design limits applicability in the context of today’s interconnected global challenges. To address these limitations, the International Committee on New Climate Change Assessment Scenarios (ICONICS) has started the Scenario Evolution Process (SEP): a community-led initiative to critically reassess, adapt, and potentially transform the SSPs to a more fit-for-purpose framework that supports research on resilient, equitable, and sustainable development and develop socioeconomic scenarios that have a applicability beyond the climate change domain.

Speakers will provide detail on the motivation, vision and process for the Scenario Evolution Process, with information on the concordant activities:

  1. A multi-stage survey to both scenario producers, as well as users of scenario-based information. This engagement aims to broaden perspectives, incorporate feedback from a broad audience, and reduce Global North bias.
  2. An academic literature exchange, incorporating recommendations towards an updated scenario framework.
  3. A series of workshops to engage with a diverse range of communities

To register for the webinar and hear more about options of staying engaged in the the evolution process going forward use this link: https://iiasa.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_NKIEsrYmQjuUW1HIneqbrA

Recordings of past webinars:

8 February 2024: New SSP 3.0 Socioeconomic Projections (Samir KC, Rob Delink, Jesus Crespo Cuaresma)

19 July 2023: Overview of the outcomes of the IPCC workshop on the use of scenarios in AR6 (Alaa Al Khourdajie and Anna Pirani, IPCC)

10 July 2023: Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP) Updates (Samir KC, Rob Delink)

25 October 2022: Communicating climate futures – insights from communications professionals (Sigourney Luz, James Painters, Shreya Jai, Andrew Dana Hudson, Kirsikka Vaajakallio)

2 November 2021: Updating the socioeconomic projections of the SSPs (Bas Van Ruijven, Detlef van Vuuren, Samir K.C., Wolfgang Lutz, Rob Dellink, Marian Leimbach)

28 September 2021: Producing a broader range of reference scenarios that include impacts and policy (Tim Carter, Elmar Kriegler, Franziska Piontek)

25 May 2021: Societal and climate conditions (Dr. Kristie Ebi & Dr. Jana Sillman)

6 April 2021: Achievements and plans forward for the SSPs and RCPs based on the Achievements and Needs of the Scenarios Framework.

22 February 2021: Tutorial on the SSPs and RCPs followed by a Q&A session with Kristie Ebi (UW), Brian O’Neill (JCGRI), and Bas van Ruijven (IIASA). Participants learned about the SSP-RCP scenario framework and the matrix architecture, SSP regional and sectoral extensions and available resources for learning about and working with the SSPs.