Red Cross Red Crescent joins author line-up for IPCC’s 7th global assessment

By the Climate Centre

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Monday announced it had appointed 664 experts from 111 countries for its seventh assessment of the global climate – known as AR7 – as Coordinating Lead Authors, Lead Authors and editors. 

They were selected by the IPCC from an international pool of nearly 4,000; nearly half are women. They include four Climate Centre experts:

*Board Chair Debra Roberts, who is a Coordinating Lead Author for the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Cities that will be the first report in the current cycle and for which drafting is already underway.
* Julie Arrighi, Director of Programmes, who will also contribute to the cities report and Working Group I, focusing on urban risks and climate services respectively as a Lead Author.
*Roop Singh, Head of Urban and Attribution, also a Lead Author, contributing to Working Group II on vulnerabilities, impacts and risks.
*Catalina Jaime, Head of Climate and Conflict, a WGII Lead Author on poverty, livelihoods, mobility and fragility.

IPCC Chair Jim Skea said that “work on the Seventh Assessment Report on the state of climate science can now begin. The author teams, drawn from several thousand excellent nominations, ensure outstanding expertise across a range of disciplines.

“We are proud that the new author teams reflect increased diversity, in terms of both gender balance and greater representation from developing countries and economies in transition.” 

‘Their commitments to scientific rigour and helping those living in the most vulnerable conditions will enrich the outputs of the IPCC’

Climate Centre Director Aditya Bahadur added: “The Climate Centre is privileged to contribute its experts to the world’s most respected research enterprise on climate change.

“Their commitments both to maintaining scientific rigour and remaining true to the Red Cross Red Crescent priority of helping those living in the most vulnerable conditions is sure to enrich the outputs of the IPCC.”

The AR7 authors will start by assessing the literature and preparing drafts of their reports for the three IPCC Working Groups that are due to begin appearing in mid-2028; the Synthesis Report that concludes the assessment process will be approved by late 2029.

The IPCC’s sixth assessment included three other Climate Centre scientists: its then Director, Maarten van Aalst, who worked on identifying key risks; its former Manager, Climate Science, Erin Coughlan de Perez, who focused on decision-making for managing risk; and its former Senior Pacific Climate Adviser, Olivia Warrick, who looked at small island states.

AR6 was completed in March 2023 and provided scientific input to the global stocktake at COP28 in Dubai; organization for AR7 began officially in July 2023 at the IPCC’s plenary session in Nairobi.

Scientists and experts volunteer as IPCC authors to assess the thousands of scientific papers published each year to provide a comprehensive summary of what is known about the drivers of climate change, including how adaptation and mitigation can reduce risks.

Media engagement at last month’s second meeting in Mombasa, Kenya of Lead Authors for the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Cities. It brought together nearly 100 authors from more than 50 countries, including Climate Centre Director of Programmes Julie Arrighi. The cities report is expected in March 2027 and will be the first report of the current AR7 cycle. (Photo: Kenya environment ministry via social media)