Anna Pirani, Focal Point alternate for Italy and CMCC senior research associate, held an “Open Hour” webinar to present the Call for experts to participate in the Scoping Meeting for the IPCC Seventh Assessment Report (AR7), interacting with the audience during a Q&A session. Valentina Bosetti (CMCC), Erika Coppola (ICTP), and Monica Salvia (CNR), who participated in previous IPCC Scoping Meetings, joined the webinar to share their experience and advice with the audience.

The presentation introduced the work of the IPCC Focal Point for Italy in collecting applications for the upcoming Scoping Meeting to be submitted to the IPCC Bureau for its final evaluation. Pirani explained in detail the Scoping Meeting design, objectives and requirements to be selected for participation.

Frequently asked questions

Call for nominations to participate in the scoping meeting for the IPCC Seventh Assessment Report (AR7) for Working Group I, II and III

More information on how to apply through the IPCC Focal Point for Italy here.

Here is a list of answers to the most frequently asked questions on how to submit a nomination for the IPCC call for experts, collected during the Open Hour Q&A session.

I am a non-Italian national working in Italy, should I apply through the Focal Point for Italy?

The Focal Point for Italy facilitates the input of experts based in Italy into the IPCC process. You are welcome to send your application through us.

Submission of your application by the Focal Point does not imply endorsement.

I am Italian, but I have an affiliation with a foreign institution. How can I apply?

You should contact the national Focal Point for the country where you are working. The full list of contacts is available here.

Observer organizations of the IPCC can also submit nominations.

If you do not have the Focal Point’s email address, please contact the IPCC Secretariat: [email protected]

Are funds available to cover travel to participate in the IPCC Meetings?

How funding is arranged depends on each country, for this reason you should contact your national Focal Point.

In the case of Italy, the expenses to participate in IPCC meetings will need to be covered by your institution / employer.

In the case of participants from developing countries, these expenses are covered by the IPCC. Your travel will be arranged by the IPCC Secretariat and funded through the IPCC Trust Fund.

Member countries, including Italy, make financial contributions to the IPCC Trust Fund so that these resources are available.

Who will select the experts that will be invited to IPCC meetings and activities?

The selection of participants for the AR7 IPCC scoping meeting is carried out by the IPCC Bureau members.

What are the principles guiding the selection of participants?

Participants are selected to achieve a balance in:

• scientific, technical and socio-economic expertise, including a range of views;
• geographical representation;
• a mixture of experts with and without previous IPCC experience;
• gender;
• experts with a background from relevant stakeholder and user groups, including practitioners, representatives from the private sector, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, and governments.

The nomination requires a brief (not more than 4 pages) CV and a completed nomination form that requests you to select topics that have been identified by the IPCC Bureau as being key for the meeting (see here). You can also highlight three key peer-reviewed publications and three additional publications that do not have to be peer-reviewed articles. So called ‘grey literature’, such as reports, can also be relevant.

I am an early career expert, should I apply to participate in the scoping meeting?

Participants of scoping meetings need to bring a mature knowledge basis and perspective that represents key areas of expertise identified as needed for the scoping meeting. This representation needs to be suitable in an international context in a fast-moving discussion. The scoping meeting is quite different from a typical scientific meeting, symposium or conference. It is also important to have a very good understanding of the IPCC assessment process, the science-policy interface and the policy spheres that the IPCC reports can inform.

This context may be less suited for early career experts who should consider building experience in the IPCC, for example as Expert Reviewers of the report drafts, as Contributing Authors, or as Authors of the reports. There are also other options to contribute, such as the Chapter Scientist role, and also it may be of interest to check whether there are job opportunities to join the Technical Support Units of the Working Groups.

If the IPCC selects me, will my participation be considered mandatory or can I opt out?

If you submit your nomination to be selected, you need to be committed to participating.

The selection process is highly competitive, with many hundreds, even over a thousand, experts wishing to participate. If you are selected, you should not then change your mind unless there are exceptional circumstances that prevent you from participating.

It may not be possible to replace you in the final list of available places to participate, so this could result in a wasted opportunity for others.

Is it envisaged that the experts that take part in the scoping meeting are cited as authors or co-authors of the report, taking ownership of the report output?

Participants of the scoping meeting will be acknowledged in the report that is produced as an outcome of the meeting, not as authors of the meeting report. The meeting report will be prepared by the IPCC Bureau. It will be submitted to the IPCC as an Information Note to accompany the proposed decision on the outline and preparation of the report at the next IPCC Plenary Session.

To become an author of the IPCC report itself, you would need to be selected following the call for nominations that will be opened once the IPCC has decided on the report scope, outline, and timeline.

Does being selected for the scoping meeting make it easier to participate as an author?

There is no direct link between being selected as a scoping meeting participant and then as an author of the report. In other words, selection of authors does not automatically consider whether you participated at the scoping meeting.

Where and when will the scoping meeting for the AR7 Working Group reports be held?

The dates and location of the meeting will be confirmed once the host country confirms and communicates this information. The meeting is expected to take place in the first half of December 2024. We expect to know this information soon and will provide news accordingly.

What is the time commitment and length of the process?

As a participant of the scoping meeting, you are committing to fully engaging in the meeting itself that is expected to last 4-5 days. The meeting is a highly interactive process of discussion, sharing ideas, developing proposals and consensus building. Some participants will be invited to co-facilitate discussions, such as in breakout groups, or act as rapporteurs to share discussion outcomes with the full set of participants.

The time commitment of a coordinating lead author, lead author or review editor of an IPCC report is a partial time commitment over approximately a three year period for a Working Group Report (it is about 2 years for a Special Report), with some periods of medium time engagement when drafting your respective section(s) and preparing figures, or responding to review comments, together with certain peak times, e.g. during Lead Author Meetings, or at key points in the timeline when drafts are being finalized.

More about this will be presented in a dedicated future open hour webinar when the IPCC issues its call for author nominations. We will discuss the time commitment and also what undertaking an IPCC assessment consists of.

How relevant to the selection process are my publication list and my participation in other IPCC activities?

Being selected as a scoping meeting participant is professionally significant because this meeting is crucial in the IPCC process. It leads to developing the foundation for an IPCC product expected to have a high impact on policy making and attract a broad audience.

Participating in a scoping meeting does not influence your publication list, but becoming an IPCC author does, as in this case you will be acknowledged as a co-author of the chapter or parts of the report that you will be contributing to.

If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact the IPCC Focal Point for Italy via [email protected].