Professor Roberto Schaeffer, from COPPE, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, will deliver a special lecture celebrating more than 30 years of contributions to energy and climate mitigation research—an achievement recognized with the 2025 IAMC Lifetime Achievement Award. The lecture will highlight the creation and evolution of the Cenergia Lab, today one of the most prominent Integrated Assessment Modeling (IAM) group in the Global South, and its pioneering development of the TEA, COFFEE, and BLUES integrated assessment models.

Professor Schaeffer will reflect on the scientific, institutional, and collaborative efforts that enabled Brazil to build autonomous, world-class IAM capacity, capable of informing national and international climate strategies. The models created by him and his colleagues at the Cenergia Lab have been instrumental in influencing Brazil’s climate and energy policy debates, providing the analytical basis for the country’s latest Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).  The event will offer unique insights into how long-term, interdisciplinary research can advance climate mitigation and influence policy in developing countries.