A new network of research institutions co-founded by Yale is recruiting U.S.-based researchers to contribute their expertise to the next report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United Nations (U.N.) body that assesses the latest science related to climate change.
The U.S. Academic Alliance for the IPCC (USAA-IPCC) has opened a call for U.S. researchers who wish to be nominated to serve as experts, authors, and review editors for the IPCC’s Seventh Assessment Report, which is expected to be released in 2029.
As registered IPCC “observers,” the alliance’s members may submit nominations for IPCC consideration.
Every five to seven years, the IPCC produces comprehensive reports that assess developments in climate science, integrating physical science, impacts and adaptation, and mitigation. The process involves hundreds of volunteer scientists from around the world.
“This alliance creates a mechanism for U.S. researchers to continue to shape global climate science and policy,” said Julie Zimmerman, Yale’s vice provost for planetary solutions and a member of the alliance’s steering committee. “The next round of IPCC reports is a crucial opportunity for U.S. experts to continue to lead and ensure rigorous, science-based assessments that benefit communities around the world.
“With our deep expertise in climate research, policy analysis, and interdisciplinary collaboration, Yale is committed to advancing knowledge that drives informed, effective decision-making for a more sustainable future.”
Karen Seto, the Frederick C. Hixon Professor of Geography and Urbanization Science at Yale School of the Environment, has served as a coordinating lead author for two IPCC assessment reports.
“The IPCC reports are the more authoritative scientific assessments on climate change, and [their] mandate is to inform policy,” said Seto, an expert on urbanization and its effects on the planet. “Each of the past IPCC Assessment Reports have had major effects on international and national policies. For example, the first IPCC report, in 1990, played a pivotal role in establishing the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. The 5th Assessment Report, in 2014, was central for setting temperature targets in the Paris Agreement.
“A number of countries, including the U.K. and China, have used the IPCC reports to set national climate targets,” she said.
Experts in climate research and practice who are U.S. citizens or based at U.S. institutions may submit applications to USAA-IPCC through its portal.
USAA-IPCC will accept submissions through April 4. A webinar for prospective experts to learn more about the nomination process is scheduled for March 27.
Yale is among the 10 colleges, universities, and research institutions that founded USAA-IPCC to facilitate nomination opportunities for experts in climate research and practice working in the United States. The other founding members are: Colby College, College of the Atlantic, Dickinson College, Indiana University, Princeton University, Rutgers University, Washington University in St. Louis, University of California San Diego, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
The American Geophysical Union, the world’s largest association of Earth and space scientists, hosts the alliance.
