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Green Great Britain Week

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the 1.5°C meeting

4 October 2018

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) opened a meeting on October 1st 2018 in Incheon, South Korea to discuss the Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C. Governments requested a report from the IPCC on the effects warming by 1.5°C would have in order to help them address climate change. 195 IPCC members’ governments and IPCC scientists will meet this week to finalise the Summary for Policymakers of the report.

The report was suggested in 2015 when governments adopted the Paris Agreement to combat climate change. Will this give IPCC scientists an opportunity to influence a change in future policies? One of the co-ordinating lead authors of the report, Dr Heleen de Coninck explained in a recent BBC report that ‘The governments approve an outline, and we have to follow those bullet points. We, as authors however determine what we write in the report and they review it and we take their comments very seriously as they improve the quality of the final product.’

Although the report itself will not change the behaviours we have developed which have led us on the path of global warming, if governments agree to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C it would require a dramatic change in how we use energy, transportation and produce food and commercial products.

Beginning on the 15th of October the government is introducing the first ever Green GB Week - an annual week designed to highlight the opportunities clean growth offers the UK and raise understanding of how business and the public can contribute to tackling climate change. Here at the Royal Meteorological Society we will be hosting several events during Green GB Week. Our meeting titled ‘How to Avoid the Worst Effects of Climate Change’ is now fully booked but we are operating a waiting list and hope to video or record the audio. We are hosting a National Meeting ‘Meeting a Global Temperature goal of 1.5°C’ on the 14th of November which will give an opportunity to explore the IPCC report in detail, as well as its policy relevance. Please find more information about the event and how to register – here.

To learn about how clean growth is helping to provide new job opportunities, grow our economy for the benefit of us all and help tackle climate change. And to get involved in building a cleaner, green future.  Learn more>>

Click here, to get involved in Green GB week or search for events across the UK >>

Green GB & NI 2018 Toolkit >>

UPDATE Click here for the IPCC report on Global Warming of 1.5°C