Research & Developments is a blog for brief updates that provide context for the flurry of news regarding law and policy changes that impact science and scientists today.
In late February, delegates from more than 190 countries met in Hangzhou, China to make preliminary decisions about the timing and content of the seventh assessment report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The Trump administration barred U.S. delegates from attending the February meeting, one step among many the president has taken to abandon America’s global leadership on climate change.
The IPCC is a United Nations body that reviews the science behind climate change. Since 1990, the group has produced assessment reports that evaluate the latest developments in climate science, impacts, adaptation, and mitigation. The reports also assess whether counties are doing enough to combat the climate crisis (spoiler: not nearly enough) and play an important role in influencing climate policy around the world. Those reports depend on the contributions of scientific experts nominated by IPCC member countries and Observer Organizations.
Resources
• Get Involved: U.S. Academic Alliance for the IPCC (USAA-IPCC)
• New US Academic Alliance for the IPCC opens critical nomination access (AGU)
• Scientists Form Academic Alliance to Support U.S. Climate Researchers (Rutgers)
To supplement nominations by the federal government, the U.S. Academic Alliance for the IPCC (USAA-IPCC) is facilitating nominations to the seventh assessment cycle for the IPCC. The alliance is a network of U.S. universities that are registered observers with the IPCC and is hosted by AGU, which publishes Eos. U.S. researchers can submit materials to self-nominate as experts, authors, and review editors for the next IPCC assessment report.
“This new alliance will help the U.S. maintain a preeminent position in global science-policy assessments,” Pamela McElwee, professor of human ecology at Rutgers University and chair of the USAA-IPCC steering committee, said in a statement. “The benefits to U.S. researchers from involvement in the IPCC are tremendous, and we want to ensure that our scientists continue to play an important leadership role internationally.”
Nominations are open through Friday, 4 April. U.S.-based experts in climate research or practice who are U.S. citizens are eligible. Learn more about the nomination process here and at the video below:
—Kimberly M. S. Cartier (@astrokimcartier.bsky.social), Staff Writer
Correction 1 April 2025: An earlier version of this article mistakenly listed AGU as an IPCC Official Observer and has been edited to clarify.
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