What is the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change? (IPCC)
When the UN was set up after the Second World War, environmental issues were not a major concern. In fact, for the first 32 years of its existence, environmental issues were dealt with under the auspices of the UN World Meteorological Organisation and were dealt with in the context of larger world issues such as famine.
It was in 1968 that environmental issues started to receive serious attention when the Economic and Social Council decided to hold the first UN Conference on the Human Environment.
This started laying the groundwork for what would eventually become the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Keep reading to find out how the IPCC became the international, intergovernmental body of climate science, lending legitimacy to early worries of a changing climate.
The Earth Summit
In 1972 the UN then went on to hold the first ‘Earth Summit’ in Stockholm.
The Earth Summit set out principles for the preservation and enhancement of the environment and warned that the world should be mindful of activities that could lead to climate change. Also proposed was a series of monitoring stations to track long term trends in the meteorological environment, including climate change. It was agreed to set up a follow-up meeting and to establish the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
For the next 20 years, Climate Change was not the central concern of this committee, but water resources, marine mammals, renewable energy resources, desertification, forests and the effect of development were the main focus.
In 1987 the UN General Assembly gave new impetus to environmental issues when it adopted a framework for action called ‘the environmental perspective for the year 2000 and beyond’. This was an attempt to get both national and international coordinated action, and saw the first use of the term ‘sustainable development’.
A year later, as global warming and the depletion of the Ozone layer were becoming increasingly prominent in the international debate, the UN established the IPCC.
Watch the video below:
“Because IPCC”
Volunteers for the non-profit project “Because IPCC” created a free graphic novel to explain the hard work of the scientists behind the IPCC.
Describing their unique work, they said ‘‘The graphic novel Because IPCC is a true story from 100 years in the future.’
Compiled into a handy and accessible narrated video, the story is free to watch! It is also available in downloadable pdf form. We highly recommend you settling in for this really engaging read.
Setting up the IPCC
The IPCC was set up as an international forum to examine the relationship between greenhouse gas warming and climate change.
At the same time, the UN General Assembly certified Climate Change as an urgent issue and asked the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and UNEP to undertake an urgent review outlining the dangers and potential strategies for delay, limitation, or mitigation of climate change. The UN General Assembly endorsed the resulting recommendations to set up a Framework Convention on Climate Change. This was initially signed by 158 states and its most important action so far was to agree to work towards stabilising atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference in the climate system.
Out of this Framework Convention developed the Conference of Parties (COP) process with
the First Conference of Parties (COP1) being held in 1995 and the first cornerstone climate change action being the adoption of the Kyoto Principle in 1997 at COP 3.
The Make Up and Function of the IPCC
The IPCC describes its function in relation to the UN as:
‘The IPCC was created to provide policymakers with regular scientific assessments on climate change, its implications and potential future risks, as well as to put forward adaptation and mitigation options’.
‘Through its assessments, the IPCC determines the state of knowledge on climate change. It identifies where there is agreement in the scientific community on topics related to climate change, and where further research is needed.
The reports are drafted and reviewed in several stages, thus guaranteeing objectivity and transparency. The IPCC does not conduct its own research. IPCC reports are neutral, policy-relevant but not policy-prescriptive. The assessment reports are a key input into the international negotiations to tackle climate change’.
The IPCC has 195 member countries, all of which are involved in agreeing with the contents of its reports to gain the widest consensus.
For more detailed information on the IPCC Processes and Reports see: About — IPCC
For the remainder of the COP Process to date see ‘The UN COP Process leading to COP 21 and Cop 26’
Extracted from UN Chronicle/Chronicle Conversations – ‘From Stockholm to Kyoto: A Brief History of Climate Change’ by Peter Jackson
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Sources:
Because IPCC – A Free Graphic Novel – History and Science of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change by https://becauseipcc.science/ is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
UN Chronicle/Chronicle Conversations – ‘From Stockholm to Kyoto: A Brief History of Climate Change’ by Peter Jackson