Source: School of Atmospheric Sciences
Written by: School of Atmospheric Sciences
Translated by: Yi Bingqi
Proofread by: Yuan Wenping
Edited by: Wang Dongmei

News from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that the search for the expert writing authors for Global Warming of 1.5°C, an IPCC special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways was completed. A total of 590 nominations from 39 countries in the world were received and a team of 86 authors were selected by the committee to take on the responsibility of writing each chapter of the report together. Four Chinese scientists from universities, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China Meteorological Administration, and National Development and Reform Commission were selected. Prof. Wenjie Dong from School of Atmospheric Sciences at Sun Yat-sen University was in the author list and served as the lead author of Chapter 4 in this special report.

It is reported that the 43rd Session of the IPCC held in 2016 agreed on the strategic schedule of the AR6 Synthesis Report, and approved the outlines of three special reports. In the context of Paris Agreement to “holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels”, the special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, will be finalized in September 2018. IPCC reported that the members of all three IPCC Working Groups carefully considered all nominations and developed the final list of authors and review editors in a detailed and iterative selection process. The selection was undertaken according to the Principles Governing IPCC Work, considering the required scientific, technical and socio-economic expertise, geographical representation, gender balance, and the inclusion of experts with and without previous IPCC experience.

“The selection of the authors for the IPCC’s 1.5°C report is the first step in the critical journey started at COP21. This special report will facilitate this important journey by assessing the available science and highlighting the policy options available to support the achievement of a climate safe, equitable and sustainable world,” said Debra Roberts, Co-Chair of Working Group II.

According to IPCC’s plan, the contents of the other two special reports included climate change, desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems, as well as climate change and oceans and the cryosphere. The AR6 Synthesis Report would be finalized in the first half of 2022.

It is learned that the search of national experts was led by the China Meteorological Administration, with several divisions including Chinese Ministry of Education, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and National Development and Reform Commission making suggestions, and the final nominations were made by Chinese government to IPCC. The other three selected experts are Prof. Xuejie Gao from Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Prof. Kejun Jiang from Energy Research Institute, National Development and Reform Commission; and Prof. Guangsheng Zhou from Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, China Meteorological Administration. At present, the First Lead Author Meeting of the Special Report is held in São Paulo, Brazil.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was the international body set up in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The objective of IPCC is to assessing the science of publications in scientific, technological, social and economic areas related to global climate change from scientific questions. In late 2015, Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the United Nations Climate Change Conference (UNFCC) held in Paris. The joint efforts of Chinese government and the international communities facilitated the epoch-making Paris Agreement in the history of human response to climate change. President Xi highly praised that the tackling of climate change by human society has entered a new starting point. From the “new starting point” of President Xi’s speech, Sun Yat-sen University established the School of Atmospheric Sciences in late 2015. In 2016, the “Climate Change and Response” platform was among the first to initiate in the “Three Major Constructions” in the university. At the same time, “Guangdong Province Key Laboratory for Climate Change and Natural Disaster Studies” was successfully approved and established.