“Assessment in a changing climate: IPCC AR5 and beyond” – Katharine Mach – 5/6/16
Date: 5/6/16
Time: 12:00pm
Location: Wean Hall 3701 Conference Room
Speaker: Katharine Mach
Topic: Assessment in a changing climate: IPCC AR5 and beyond
Abstract:
Climate change assessment by the IPCC and many others has definitively taken stock of the climate problem: unequivocal warming, widespread observed impacts, and serious risks from continued high emissions. Decades on, assessment faces new demands in an emerging era of climate responses, especially given the mismatches between aspirations and the current status of action. In this presentation, I will introduce and critically evaluate approaches adopted in the latest report by the IPCC. Case studies will include (1) multi-criteria assessment of climate change risks, (2) communication of uncertainties in assessment findings, and (3) science-policy interactions during governmental approval of IPCC policymaker summaries. Throughout, I will reflect on lessons for future assessment to advance climate solutions. In particular, I will consider next directions for integrating diverse evidence, applying expert judgment, exploring possible futures, and communicating the results. These directions can improve assessment of risks with increasing warming, of mitigation and adaptation effectiveness, and of synergies and trade-offs across the diversity of societal objectives.
View a video of the seminar here.
