News

Call for participation, IPCC special report

26.03.2018

As part of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) sixth assessment cycle, an IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC) is currently being written and is to be completed and published by the end of 2019. The report assesses the relevant literature on this topic, with a focus on literature since the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (AR5), and includes both the physical and human aspects. Relevant chapters for the cryosphere and the mountains include chapters on High Mountains and Polar Regions. The report outline can be found here.

The First-Order Draft is due on 20 April 2018. Any publications to be considered in the final report must be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal by 15 October 2018 at the latest, and accepted by 15 May 2019 at the latest.

The Mountain Research Initiative (MRI) is actively involved in the current IPCC SROCC and upcoming AR6 reports and wants to encourage and support your participation through literature contributions on mountains and inform you of expert review opportunities. If you are aware of any relevant peer-reviewed literature that has not yet been published but is expected to be published in time for possible inclusion in the report, you may consider bringing it to the attention of a relevant lead author as soon as possible. The list of lead authors can be found here. Alternatively, you can also contact MRI directly with your suggestions, and/or fill out this online form set up to collect bibliographic details of your suggestions and contributions.

The SROCC report is due to be finalized in September 2019.

For reference, the report will focus on the following time periods as reference periods in reporting past and future cryospheric changes. These periods are not prescriptive but an attempt to standardize results throughout the report.

Standardization of time periods
• Pre-industrial reference: 1850-1900 (SR1.5)
• Recent past reference: 1986-2005 (AR5)
• Present day: ~2005-2015 (SROCC)
• Near-term: 2031-2050 (SROCC)
• End of Century: 2081-2100 (AR5)
Scenarios RCP2.6, RCP8.5 to bracket
If global warming levels are considered, 1.5°C and 2°C are preferred.

Also, please consider providing an expert review of the First Order Draft (4 May - 29 June). Review registration will open in April 2018 and a link will be made available on the IPCC website.

Read more 

News by MRI

Photo: FAO/Richard Slaby