UN warns that ‘time is not on our side' as key climate science meeting begins
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is meeting for a week-long session in Hangzhou, China to negotiate the content and timing of the next landmark assessment. It comes not long after several climate agencies c onfirmed that 2024 was the hottest year on record.
On Monday, UN Environment Programme chief Inger Andersen opened the meeting by warning that 'time is not on our side', urging 'ambitious' outcomes from these talks.
IPCC Chair Jim Skea said it was a 'pivotal session' for the delivery of the next report on global climate science.
What is the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment report?
These landmark reports from the IPCC were set up in 1988 to inform policymakers of the latest climate science. The first was published in 1990 and they are now considered to be the most authoritative source of global climate science information.
In the words of World Meteorological Organisation deputy secretary general Ko Barret at the opening of the meeting on Monday, they are 'a guiding compass for governments as they navigate the complexities of climate change'.
The report brings together and summarises the latest evidence on climate change from leading scientists around the world and takes hundreds of experts years to produce.
This will be the seventh round of assessments that will compile global climate science into three reports: one on the physical science of climate change, one on the climate impacts, and one on solutions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The three-part report is currently set to be released in 2029 – but that could change as some countries call for an earlier delivery date.
Why do countries disagree about the timing of the report?
Discussions in Hangzhou are expected to be tense as it could be the last chance for countries to agree on a timeline. Some are pushing for the next report to be released earlier than planned.
A group of 20 ministers from the High Ambition Coalition has called for the protection of climate science that countries rely on to make vital climate policy decisions. Environment ministers behind the statement include those from EU countries, island nations, and some of the countries most vulnerable to climate change.
'We owe it to everyone suffering the impacts of the climate crisis now, and to future generations, to make decisions about our planet's future on the basis of the best evidence and knowledge available to us,' they said in a joint statement.
The ministers added that it is vital the IPCC's latest report is ready in time to inform the next UN Global Stocktake in 2028, a process that assesses the world's progress towards meeting Paris Agreement goals.
A group of countries made up of Russia, Saudi Arabia, China, South Africa and India - backed by Kenya - has pushed back on an accelerated timeline, arguing that it would be too rushed. They have also said it could put the report's inclusivity at risk, making it harder to include scientists from the Global South.
Has Trump prevented the US delegation from attending?
US officials from the State Department and scientists from federal agencies have reportedly been pulled out of IPCC talks by the Trump administration.
It comes after President Donald Trump signed an executive order to withdraw the US from the Paris Agreemen t for a second time on his first day in office.
Sources familiar with the situation told news agencies Reuters and Axios that a stop work order was impacting staff at the US Global Change Research Program and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – key organisations that usually take part in IPCC talks.
NASA's chief scientist Kate Calvin – who holds a leadership role in the new report cycle - will no longer attend as a result, according to CNN, which cited a spokesperson from the space agency.
They said that this was part of Trump's broader withdrawal from multilateral cooperation and efforts to mitigate climate change.
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