Half-Day Training Workshop on the MESSAGEix_IL Model for the Israeli Energy System
Prof. Ruslana Rachel Palatnik
20 January 2026
The objective of the workshop is to provide an introduction to the MESSAGEix_IL model of the Israeli energy system and to examine its potential use for relevant stakeholders. MESSAGEix_IL is a long-term Integrated Assessment Model (IAM) of the Israeli energy system. The model is a national-level implementation of the global IAM MESSAGEix, which has been developed over the past four decades at the IIASA research center.
The model is a dynamic optimization model based on a detailed representation of a wide range of energy technologies, including technologies currently in use in Israel as well as those that may be introduced in the future (such as hydrogen, nuclear energy, and others). The model represents the entire energy system, from resource extraction, international trade, refining and conversion, transmission and distribution, to the provision of energy services for various end uses, including households and the commercial sector, industrial processes, and transportation at different scales, both at the national and global levels.
The solution of the optimization model yields the optimal energy supply mix to meet energy demand under technical, economic, and environmental constraints.
Location: Tel Aviv University
Agenda
13:30 Registration and refreshments
14:00 Opening session and introduction to the MESSAGEix model
14:45 Break
15:00 Insights from recent studies and case studies
15:45 Break
16:00 Discussion on the potential use of the MESSAGEix model for decision-makers and questions for future research
About the Lecturer
Ruslana Rachel Palatnik is an Associate Professor in the Department of Economics and Management at the Yezreel Valley Academic College, and a Research Fellow at the Natural Resources and Environmental Research Center at the University of Haifa, the Israel Democracy Institute, the ATHENA Research Center in Greece, and the IIASA Institute in Austria.
Over the years, Professor Palatnik has led research whose practical implementation has contributed to shaping environmental and economic policy in Israel. This includes advancing the carbon tax that was incorporated into the state budget (though not in its final form; Professor Palatnik continues to collaborate with the Ministry of Environmental Protection and additional partners on research examining its future design), as well as advising the Ministry of Energy on the development of a low-emission, economically efficient energy sector.
Professor Palatnik also researches the role of the bioeconomy in sustainable economic growth. She serves as Israel’s official representative to the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (EAERE).
Hebrew translation and registration link may be found on the following link: