Behnam Zakeri
Deputy Head Of The Institute For Data, Energy, And Sustainability (IDEaS)
Vienna, Austria
Summary
👤
Senior🎓
Top SchoolBehnam Zakeri is a research-focused energy systems modeller and data scientist with eight years of experience studying the intersections of digitalization, renewable integration, and climate policy. Currently Deputy Head of IDEaS and Assistant Professor in Vienna, he leads work on AI and digital transformation impacts on energy transitions while teaching and advising policymakers. His contributions to open-source tools like MESSAGEix show hands-on experience implementing and testing core model features—particularly around storage dynamics and emissions constraints. Behnam combines strong academic credentials (DSc in Energy Economics and Modelling) with practical techno‑economic analyses of storage, long-duration options, and market integration, often translating complex model linkages into policy-relevant insights. Based in Vienna, he is known for bridging rigorous modelling with capacity building to make energy transition scenarios actionable.
8 years of coding experience
4 years of employment as a software developer
Master's degree (unfinished yet), Industrial Management, Master's degree (unfinished yet), Industrial Management at University of VaasaDoctor of Science (Technology), Energy Economics and Modelling, 4.4 out of 5, Doctor of Science (Technology), Energy Economics and Modelling, 4.4 out of 5 at Department of Energy Technology, Aalto UniversityBachelor of Science (B.Sc.), Mechanical Engineering (Heat and fluids), Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.), Mechanical Engineering (Heat and fluids) at Iran University of Science and TechnologyMaster of Science (M.Sc.), Energy Technology, 4.9, Master of Science (M.Sc.), Energy Technology, 4.9 at Lappeenranta University of Technology
English, Swedish, Persian, Finnish, German
Github Skills (5)
energy-system10
unit-testing10
python10
testing10
gam9
Programming languages (3)
Github contributions (5)
iiasa/message_ix
Aug 2018 - Nov 2022
The integrated assessment and energy systems model MESSAGEix
Role in this project:
Backend Developer & Test Automation Engineer
Backend Developer & Test Automation EngineerContributions:73 reviews, 123 commits, 34 PRs in 4 years 3 months
Contributions summary:Behnam implemented unit tests for emission bounds, adding functionality for testing cumulative and per-period emission limits. They also contributed to adding new years to MESSAGE scenarios, implementing a function to add new time steps and associated tests. Furthermore, the user updated existing code related to storage equations, including mapping of time and periods, along with associated testing procedures. These changes indicate the user's involvement in developing and testing core model features within the MESSAGEix framework.
pythonsnl-applicationsenergy-systemmodeling-toolpower-systems
behnam-zakeri/message_ix
Aug 2018 - Oct 2024
The integrated assessment and energy systems model MESSAGEix
Contributions:2 reviews, 3 PRs, 273 pushes in 6 years 2 months
pythonintegratedenergy-systemsintegrated-assessmentassessment
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