IPCC holds preparatory meeting in Monaco for Special Report on Climate Change and the Oceans and the Cryosphere

“Oceans cover 70% of the planet’s surface and play a key role in the climate system, as well as providing a source of food and livelihood for millions of people,” said IPCC Chair Lee. “This highly policy-relevant report will enhance our understanding of oceans and the cryosphere, including sea-level rise.”

The cryosphere - from the Greek kryos, meaning cold or ice - is a word to collectively designate the areas of the Earth where water is found in its solid state.  This includes ice sheets, frozen lakes and rivers, regions covered by snow, glaciers, and frozen soil.

The Government of Monaco welcomed the decision taken by the IPCC at its 41st Session in April 2016 to produce the Special Report, which is scheduled for completion in 2019.

“For many years Monaco has made support for research a key focus of its policy. Significant persuasion efforts were implemented in support of the establishment of an IPCC report devoted to the oceans and the cryosphere,” said HSH Prince Albert II.

The Scoping Meeting is supported by the Government of Monaco and The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation. 

What is the IPCC?

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the UN body for assessing the science related to climate change. It was established by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in 1988 to provide political leaders with periodic scientific assessments concerning climate change, its implications and potential future risks, as well as to put forward adaptation and mitigation strategies. It has 195 member states.

IPCC assessments provide governments, at all levels, with scientific information that they can use to develop climate policies. IPCC assessments are a key input into the international negotiations to tackle climate change. IPCC reports are drafted and reviewed in several stages, thus guaranteeing objectivity and transparency.

Comprehensive scientific assessment reports are published every 6 to 7 years; the latest, the Fifth Assessment Report, was completed in 2014. The next comprehensive assessment is scheduled to be completed in 2022. The IPCC also publishes special reports on more specific issues between assessment reports.

In addition to the Special Report on Climate Change and the Oceans and the Cryosphere, the IPCC has agreed to prepare two other special reports during this assessment cycle:

- Global Warming of 1.5ºC, an IPCC special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate poverty, to be delivered in 2018; and

- a special report on climate change, desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems, to be delivered in 2019.

The IPCC also prepares methodologies to enable countries to report their emissions and removals of greenhouse gases. It is currently updating the 2006 IPCC Guidelines on National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, for completion in 2019.

The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation

In June 2006, HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco decided to establish his Foundation to address our planet's alarming environmental situation. The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation is dedicated to the protection of the environment and the promotion of sustainable development. The Foundation is active internationally, mobilizing citizens, politicians, scientists and economic players around the protection of nature – humankind’s shared heritage.