If you’re plugged into sustainability news, you’ve probably heard about the most recent IPCC report. People have been citing it as increasing proof that action against climate change is more important than ever.
But what is the IPCC? What does their report say and can it be trusted?
According to their website, “the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change.” It was established in 1998 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Since then and through today, the IPCC has maintained international scope. Members of the IPCC consists of 195 expert scientists from the WMO and United Nations, and thousands of additional scientists collaborate in their areas of expertise.
Although it is a research organization, the IPCC does not actually conduct their own research. Instead, they release reports that can be described as ‘meta-analyses’ of published scientific research. By gathering many smaller reports, studies, and publications and reviewing them as a whole, the IPCC is able to create models and ideas of a much larger picture.
The most recent report is the Six Assessment Report. The first part, The Physical Science Basis, came out on August 9th, 2021. The next two parts, Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability and Mitigation of Climate Change, are set to come out in 2022.
The Sixth Assessment Report is the first report since 2014, meaning almost a decade of additional scientific research has been conducted since The Fifth Assessment Report. Thus, there are many striking differences between the two reports, and new takeaways from the most recent report.
To begin, the Sixth Assessment shows that Earth will likely reach 1.5 C degrees of warming in the next two decades, and that without immediate and strong action, may reach 4.4 C degrees of warming by 2100.
Importantly, the report shows that the link between climate change and extreme weather events, such as the increase in category 4 and 5 hurricanes, droughts, fires, and heatwaves that humanity has experienced in the last few years.
The IPCC is the most trusted source of information about climate change, and so it’s important that society takes its warnings seriously. The picture painted by part 1 of The Sixth Assessment is worrying, but it does show that there is a path to avoid the worst of climate change. Undoubtedly, parts 2 and 3 of the assessment will provide more insight and guidance, so keep an eye out as we enter 2022.
To read more about the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report, click here.
by Caroline Lonneman
Sources:
The Intergovernmental panel on climate change. IPCC. (n.d.). Retrieved September 24, 2021, from https://www.ipcc.ch/.
Levin, K., Waskow, D., & Gerholdt, R. (2021, August 9). 5 big findings from the IPCC’s 2021 Climate Report. World Resources Institute. Retrieved September 24, 2021, from https://www.wri.org/insights/ipcc-climate-report.
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