[Prof. dr. K.S. (Klaus) Hubacek

University of Groningen, Faculty of Science and Engineering
Integrated Research on Energy, Environment and Society | IREES

Klaus Hubacek is a Professor in Science, Technology and Society at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands. He is chair of Integrated Research on Energy, Environment and Society (IREES) and chair of the board of Energy and Sustainability Research Institute Groningen (ESRIG). Klaus is currently also a visiting professor in geographical sciences at the University of Maryland, College Park. Previously he worked or held visiting positions at the University of Leeds, UK, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Normal University, China, the University of Cambridge, UK, and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Austria. His research focus is on conceptualizing and modeling the interactions between human and environmental systems. Klaus has been recently involved in building an integrated climate assessment model funded by Horizon 2020 and on forecasting carbon emissions funded by NASA. Klaus has published over 200 research articles in peer-reviewed journals on topics such as climate change adaptation and mitigation, participatory modeling, management of ecosystems services, land use change and governance, and is recognized as a highly cited researcher with multiple papers in the top 1% by citations. Klaus conducted studies for a number of national agencies in Austria, the Czech Republic, China, Japan, Spain, the UK, and the U.S., and international institutions such as the World Bank and the Interamerican Development Bank (IADB).  Klaus is a lead author of the forthcoming 6th assessment report of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) leading chapters on Behavior and Consumption-based Emissions.

Other positions

Lead author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
Adjunct Professor in Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, USA

COVID-19 and Climate Change

Government policies during the COVID-19 pandemic have drastically altered patterns of energy demand around the world. Many international borders were closed and populations were confined to their homes, which reduced transport and changed consumption patterns. Also, government actions and economic incentives postcrisis will likely influence the global CO2 emissions path for decades. Those stimuli could either be a threat to global climate change or a jumpstart to achieve a net-zero energy economy. The large amount of liquidity introduced into the market can either reinforce the carbon lock-in effect by investing in the carbon-intensive sectors or go to clean energy sectors to escape the path dependences of fossil fuel-based production and consumption. The most carbon-intensive scenario would increase 5-yr global emissions (2020 to 2024) by 16.4% (23.2 Gt). In contrast, the ‘greenest’ scenario could reduce emissions by 4.7% (6.6 Gt), if the fiscal stimuli are allocated to high-tech industries with low-carbon technologies. Thus, governments need to be cautious when reopening the economy and designing fiscal stimulus plans.

Our project provides a timely analysis on the impacts of COVID-19 and ongoing recovery plans on global climate change mitigation.

Contact person: Yuli Shan (y.shan@rug.nl) & Klaus Hubacek (k.hubacek@rug.nl)

Urban carbon footprints

With the accelerating climate emergency, decision-makers need specific sub-national information on sources of carbon emissions, reduction potentials and mitigation measures. Cities, which account for 80% of global GDP, 60-80% of energy consumption, and 75% of carbon emissions, are central to global climate change mitigation and the implementation of low-carbon development strategies.

As centers of wealth and innovation, cities have resources and tools that are needed to address climate change challenges. In fact, they are increasingly at the forefront of efforts to address climate change mitigation with many signing up to frameworks for reducing GHG emissions. The urban climate actions place urgent demands on the scientific community to provide timely and useful information and knowledge of urban development, energy use, environments, human health, and ecosystem.

This project provides the most up-to-date carbon footprint accounts for cities, especially those from the developing countries.

Contact person: Yuli Shan (y.shan@rug.nl) & Klaus Hubacek (k.hubacek@rug.nl)

Emission accounts in the developing world

Developing countries are responsible for more than 60% of global carbon emissions. They are fast-growing and playing a more and more important role in the global supply chains. Understanding their emission trends and patterns are crucial to global climate change mitigation and low-carbon transition.

Our project focuses on the fast-growing developing countries and transition economies (e.g., China, African countries and India) and discusses how they contribute to the global emissions and global climate change mitigation.

Contact person: Yuli Shan (y.shan@rug.nl) & Klaus Hubacek (k.hubacek@rug.nl)