The Institute for Systems Science, Innovation and Sustainability Research (SIS) addresses the issue of sustainable development. The focus is on the analysis of transition, innovation and adaptation processes in human-environment systems, with emphasis on regions and organizations. We build our research on theories and concepts of systems and sustainability science, and develop inter- and transdisciplinary methods for analyzing and modeling human-environment systems. We develop scenarios and transition pathways and evaluate strategies to manage them.
SIS is a special institute in several ways:
- It combines the three research fields of systems science, innovation and transition science, and sustainability research.
- It serves as an interface between the collaborative potential of scientists in the social and natural sciences.
- Due to its transdisciplinary research, it maintains intensive cooperation with companies and within the regions, taking into account highly qualified applied research.
- It combines qualitative and quantitative methods in its research projects.
The Institute coordinates two international Joint Master Programs and is therefore well integrated in the international network in the two fields of "teaching" and "research".
Within the URBI faculty, SIS has a special position as it is the interface between the different institutes within the faculty as well as to almost all faculties within the University of Graz. SIS is, together with the Wegener Center, part of the science field Environmental Systems Science and plays a central role within the research field "Environment and Global Change".