IPCC Working Group II Technical Support Unit
(hosted by the AWI until the end of 2023)
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change. The IPCC is structured in three Working Groups (WG) and the Task Force on National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (TFI). Working Group I deals with “The Physical Science Basis of Climate Change”, Working Group II with “Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability” and Working Group III with “Mitigation of Climate Change”. Each of the four groups is assisted by a Technical Support Unit (TSU).
Prof. Dr. Hans-Otto Pörtner is marine scientist at the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) and was one of the two Co-Chairs of IPCC WGII. The TSU was hosted by the AWI and based in Bremen, Germany. Its staff provides scientific, technical and organisational support to several hundred WGII authors around the world and facilitates the preparation and production of the WGII contributions to the current IPCC assessment.
Assessing Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability
The IPCC WGII assesses the impacts of climate change, from a world-wide to a regional view of ecosystems and biodiversity, and of humans and their diverse societies, cultures, and settlements. It considers their vulnerabilities and the capacities and limits of these natural and human systems to adapt to climate change and thereby reduce climate-associated risks. It considers options for building a sustainable future for all through an equitable and integrated approach to mitigation and adaptation efforts at all scales.
Informing policy decisions
IPCC assessments are policy-relevant but not policy-prescriptive; they provide a scientific basis for climate-related policies developed by governments at all levels. Such policies then shape the negotiations at the Conference of the Parties under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Fostering dialogue
The IPCC enhances its communications and outreach activities. Policy makers on a global, regional and national level as well as the broader public and the media are provided with information according to their respective needs and requirements. Different channels are used to enable a dialogue between science, policy and public. These activities are also supported by the WG II TSU office.
