The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has issued two calls for authors for the upcoming Special Report on Climate Change and Cities and the 2027 Methodology Report on Inventories for Short-lived Climate Forcers. The IPCC Focal Point for Italy invites expressions of interest from Italian-affiliated experts.

*Note for Italian speakers: Poiché tutti i lavori riguardanti i Report dell’IPCC si svolgono in lingua inglese, così come tutti i materiali da fornire per proporre la propria candidatura sono richiesti in lingua inglese, tutte le comunicazioni ufficiali dell’IPCC Focal Point per l’Italia relative alla manifestazione di interesse saranno in lingua inglese.

Anna Pirani, Focal Point alternate for Italy and CMCC senior research associate, held an “Open Hour” webinar to present the calls for authors for the Special Report on Climate Change and Cities and the 2027 Methodology Report on Inventories for Short-lived Climate Forcers.

Former IPCC authors from Italy were invited to share their experience, offering unique insights into the roles and writing process. 

Annalisa Cherchi, Italian National Research Council – Institute of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate (CNR-ISAC) and lead author of the IPCC AR6 in Working Group I.

Giacomo Grassi, Joint Research Centre (JRC) and member of the IPCC Bureau of the Task Force on greenhouse gas inventories (TFI), who also served as  as Lead Author of the IPCC 2019 Methodological Refinement of the 2006 Guidelines and the Special Report on Climate Change and Land.

Elena Verdolini, CMCC and lead author of the IPCC AR6 in Working Group III.

The presentation introduced the work of the IPCC Focal Point for Italy in collecting nominations for the Methodology and Special Reports.
The webinar slides are available here for download. 

How to apply

Nominations for the 2027 Methodology Report on Inventories for Short-lived Climate Forcers should be submitted to the IPCC Focal Point for Italy by Friday, 6 September 2024 (midnight CEST).

Nominations for the Special Report on Climate Change and Cities should be submitted to the IPCC Focal Point for Italy by Friday, 13 September 2024 (midnight CEST).

The IPCC Focal Point for Italy invites expressions of interest from Italian-affiliated experts to participate as authors for the upcoming Special Report on Climate Change and Cities and the 2027 Methodology Report on Inventories for Short-lived Climate Forcers. The Focal Point will submit nominations meeting the expertise criteria and minimum application standards to the IPCC official platform for the final selection. 

To be considered for participation, please follow the steps listed here: 

• 2027 Methodology Report on Inventories for Short-lived Climate Forcers
• Special Report on Climate Change and Cities

Non-compliant nominations will not be considered in the selection process.

Italian-affiliated experts whose candidature will be accepted by the IPCC Bureau, please note that the costs for participating in the meetings  will need to be covered by the participant’s affiliated institution.

If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact the IPCC Focal Point for Italy via ipcc.fp@cmcc.it.

Frequently asked questions

Please see the following links for the agreed outlines of the reports, the outcome of the 62nd Session of the IPCC. The outline documents include the title of the report, the chapter titles, their indicative contents, timeline and budget allocation from the IPCC Trust Fund to cover the expenses to attend in-person meetings for developing country authors:

• 2027 Methodology Report on Inventories for Short-lived Climate Forcers
• Special Report on Climate Change and Cities

Please read the accepted outlines carefully before considering whether or not to apply for one of the roles in the preparation of the reports.

What is the timeframe for the preparation of these reports?

The detailed timeline (Lead Author Meetings, review periods etc.) is available with the report outlines, see above. The selection of authors will take place in the 4th quarter of 2024 so authors will start work in the first quarter of 2025. The Final draft will be prepared by December 2026 for the SRCities, and the first half of 2027 for the Method. SLCFs. The reports will be considered for approval, acceptance and adoption by the IPCC panel in March 2027 for SRCities and in the 2nd half 2027 for the Method. SLCFs.

Who selects the authors?

The Bureau of Working Group I, II and III will select the authors of the SR Cities, while the Bureau of the Task Force on greenhouse gas inventories (TFI) will select the authors of the Method. SLCFs.

What is the role of the Focal Point in the selection process?

The Focal Point for Italy ensures that nominations that are submitted to the IPCC meet the expertise criteria and minimum application standards to the IPCC.

What do the roles for which nominations are sought consist of?

Information on the roles is available in Annex 1 of Appendix A to the Principles Governing IPCC Work. In brief the roles consist of:

Coordinating Lead Authors

The overall responsibility for coordinating the assessment undertaken by a chapter, to develop the key findings and to communicate these by means of the Executive Summary of their chapter, as well as contributing to the preparation of the Technical Summary and Summary for Policymakers (SPM).

Lead Authors

To be responsible for the production of designated sections addressing items of the work programme on the basis of the best scientific, technical and socio-economic information available.

Review Editors

Assist the Working Group/Task Force Bureau in identifying reviewers for the expert review process, ensure that all expert and government review comments are afforded appropriate consideration and response, and advise authors on how to handle contentious/controversial issues.

Do you suggest that a motivated junior researcher apply to contribute? Or should only senior researchers apply? 

Highly motivated experts are encouraged to apply, cognisant of the commitment and expectations for taking on the roles of Coordinating Lead Author, Lead Author and Review Editor (see Annex 1 of Appendix A to the Principles Governing IPCC Work).

Candidates need to have demonstrated experience and knowledge in the topics identified in the chapters they are interested in applying for. 

Authors are expected to have provided substantial contributions for which they are accountable (in terms of quality of the assessment). This can be in the form of paragraphs of text, sections, boxes, tables, figures; they need to collaborate with other authors to collectively achieve a consensus on the confidence in the assessment conclusions, review and agree to the full chapter; respond to review comments received on drafts; and participate in Lead Author Meetings (in-person – CLAs, LAs participate in four LAMs, while REs participate in the final two LAMs) and chapter meetings (online).

What about candidates not based in academic institutions?

The IPCC welcomes nominations of experts based in non-academic public and private institutions, companies and organizations with knowledge that is relevant for the assessment of topics identified in the report outlines. The selection will take into account all relevant experience and not only academic degrees.

Is nomination via the Italy Focal Point only for experts based in Italy, who are Italian nationals? If the potential nominee has a foreign nationality, should he/she go via the focal point of the home country?

Italy works to strengthen the interface between IPCC and the expertise base in Italy, regardless of nationality. Nominations are submitted for experts who are foreign nationals but working in Italian institutions.

Regarding the possibility of contributing literature to the reports, what could be the cut off dates?

The cut off date for literature to be accepted and published in the literature is typically before the completion of the Second Order Draft (SOD), ahead of the SOD expert and government review.