CMCC’s Massimo Tavoni has received the IAMC Award for Extraordinary Contributions to Integrated Assessment Modeling, recognizing his pioneering work in climate policy, groundbreaking advancements in climate-economic modeling, and dedicated mentorship of the next generation of researchers.

The Integrated Assessment Modeling Consortium (IAMC) has announced that Massimo Tavoni, Director of the European Institute on Economics and the Environment (EIEE) at the CMCC Foundation and professor of climate economics at Politecnico di Milano, has been awarded the IAMC Award for Extraordinary Contributions to the field of Integrated Assessment Modeling (ECA). This recognition, announced on November 6th during the IAMC Annual Meeting in South Korea, celebrates his groundbreaking work in integrating climate change mitigation pathways with models that evaluate climate impacts and decision-making under uncertainty.

As highlighted in the award motivation, Tavoni has made pioneering scientific contributions on the economics of climate change mitigation pathways, connecting endogenous learning and innovation, finance, consumer behavior, climate change damages, and distributional impacts with integrated assessment modeling. His work advances the feasibility and robustness of scenarios, linking them to uncertainty, decision, and policy analysis through numerous projects, including an ERC starting grant (COBHAM) and an ERC consolidator grant (EUNICE). Tavoni has made a lasting impact on science-based policy advice, notably as an IPCC lead author in AR5 (mitigation costs and distributional impacts) and AR6 (feasibility assessment of mitigation pathways). He has also provided outstanding service to the community by mentoring early-career researchers, co-directing the international energy workshops, establishing the EIEE at CMCC, and hosting the IAMC secretariat for the past seven years at CMCC.

“I am very thankful for the award, which is a testament not just to my own contributions but mostly to those of our institute,” Tavoni said. “Modeling is a collective scientific enterprise: at its best, it blends different disciplinary competencies into something that is more than the sum of the parts. In an increasingly polarized world, including in climate policy, we need robust evidence to guide critical decisions and align them with science.”

The IAMC is recognized worldwide for bringing together leading experts in climate modeling. Its affiliated research institutes contribute crucial scenarios for the IPCC and inform climate policies for countries and organizations globally. IAMC scenarios, such as those that shaped the Net-Zero framework, provide quantitative insights into sustainable technological, economic, and social pathways compatible with climate goals. The CMCC Foundation has also played a significant role in the IAMC’s work, hosting the IAMC Secretariat for the past seven years.

This award highlights Tavoni’s commitment to the broader field of integrated assessment, with a focus on blending scientific, economic, and social data to help countries and communities worldwide understand and implement effective climate adaptation and mitigation strategies.

More information on the IAMC Award for Extraordinary Contributions to the field of IAM.