WCRP Robust Information Working Group
Societies and ecosystems face growing risks from climate change, and the need for adaptation becomes more and more evident. Many governments have even started to mainstream the inclusion of “climate proofing” in public and private investments. Regional climate information is therefore increasingly needed to underpin climate risk assessments, adaptation planning and climate proofing. To avoid both maladaptation and misusing risk assessments for mere regulatory box-ticking, the climate information has to fulfill at least minimum requirements in terms of trustworthiness and fitness for the specific decision making context. Such information is often referred to as robust information.
Despite its relevance and timeliness, there is neither a consensus of what actually constitutes robust climate information, nor is it clear how the use of such information could be mainstreamed.
The Core Project Regional Information for Society (RIfS) of the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) has therefore recently launched the Robust Information Working Group (RIWG). Understanding and mainstreaming robust information is a transdisciplinary endeavour, the working group thus not only includes climate scientists and impact modelers, but also philosophers, social scientists and stakeholders.
Aim:
The aim of this townhall is, first, to present the aims, plans and initial results of the Working Group to both scientists across all involved disciplines as well as stakeholders and decision makers. Second, we aim to brainstorm ideas and get feedback in small groups discussing different aspects of robustness.
Target Audience:
We invite (1) all involved scientific disciplines, including climate scientists, impact modelers, philosophers of science, moral philosophers, economists, and social scientists. (2) public and private stakeholders, decision makers, representatives of regulatory bodies.
Expected Outcomes:
Raising awareness about the need for robust information; increasing visibility of the working group; extending the network of the working group and engaging with people; receiving feedback to feed into the work of the group.
The oral presentations are given in a hybrid format supported by a Zoom meeting featuring on-site and virtual presentations. The button to access the Zoom meeting appears just before the time block starts.