1 November 2014: The 40th session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC-40) met to consider and finalize the Synthesis Report (SYR), which integrates the findings from the three IPCC Working Group (WG) reports. Together, these comprise the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report (AR5). On 1 November, the Panel approved the SYR’s Summary for Policymakers (SPM) line by line, and adopted the longer SYR section by section.

More than 800 authors and review editors from 85 countries participated in the preparation of AR5 over the past six years. Approximately 450 participants attended IPCC-40, which took place from 27 October – 1 November 2014, at the Tivoli Conference Center in Copenhagen, Denmark, including government representatives, authors, representatives of UN organizations, members of civil society, and academics.

The SPM consists of an introduction and four sections. The section on Observed Changes and their Causes includes subsections on: observed changes in the climate system; causes of climate change; impacts of climate change; and extreme events. The section on Future Climate Changes, Risks and Impacts includes subsections on: key drivers of future climate; projected changes in climate systems; future risks and impacts caused by a changing climate; and climate change beyond 2100, irreversibility and abrupt changes. The section on Future Pathways for Adaptation, Mitigation and Sustainable Development includes subsections on: foundations of decision making about climate change; climate change risks reduced by mitigation and adaptation; characteristics of adaptation pathways; and characteristics of mitigation pathways. The section on Adaptation and Mitigation includes subsections on: common enabling factors and constraints for adaptation and mitigation responses; response options for adaptation; response options for mitigation; policy approaches for adaptation and mitigation, technology and finance; and trade-offs, synergies and interactions with sustainable development. The longer report elaborates on these issues.

In addition to approving the SPM and adopting the SYR, IPCC-40 addressed, inter alia: the IPCC programme and budget through 2017; future work of the IPCC; communication and outreach activities; a request for a technical report on climate change, food security and agriculture; implementation of the IPCC conflict of interest (COI) policy; and matters related to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and other international bodies. The Panel also heard a number of progress reports, including by the Task Force on Greenhouse Gas Inventories (TFI), on the IPCC’s carbon footprint, and from the three WGs.

The third meeting of the Task Group on the Future Work of the IPCC (TGF) met immediately prior to IPCC-40 on 26 October to consider, among other things, the refined Options Paper prepared by the Task Group Co-Chairs, which draws on submissions from governments, scientists, observer organizations, Technical Support Units (TSUs) and the Secretariat.

AR5 has been under preparation for six years and consists of the SYR and contributions by the three WGs. The Panel adopted Working Group I’s (WGI) contribution on the physical science basis of climate change in Stockholm, Sweden, in September 2013, and Working Group II’s (WGII) contribution on climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability in March 2014 in Yokohama, Japan. WGIII’s contribution on mitigation of climate change was adopted in April 2014 in Berlin, Germany. AR5 is dedicated to the memory of Professor Stephen Schneider, who was a major contributor to the IPCC and “one of its fiercest supporters.” [IISD RS Coverage of IPCC-40] [IPCC-40 Website]