Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - Background

Reposted from: http://unfccc.int/methods_and_science/other_methodological_issues/items/1077.php

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is an independent body founded under the auspices of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). It assesses the scientific literature and provides vital scientific information to the climate change process.

The IPCC is best known for its comprehensive assessment reports, incorporating summaries for policymakers from all three Working Groups, which are widely recognized as the most credible sources of information on climate change.

The First Assessment Report in 1990 helped launch negotiations on the Convention.

The 1995 Second Assessment Report, in particular its statement that "the balance of evidence suggests … a discernible human influence on global climate", stimulated many governments into intensifying negotiations on what was to become the Kyoto Protocol.

Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
The Third Assessment Report, released in May 2001, confirmed the findings of the Second Assessment Report, providing new and stronger evidence of a warming world.

* Scientific, technical and socio-economic aspects of impacts of, and vulnerability and adaptation to, climate change, and
* Scientific, technical and socio-economic aspects of mitigation,

Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

During SBSTA 26 (Bonn, May 2007), the secretariat has organized, in cooperation with the IPCC, an in-depth briefing during the sessions of the subsidiary bodies on the contributions of the three IPCC working groups to the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4).