Several SPARCCLE researchers took part in the ISIMIP-PROCLIAS Cross-sectoral climate impacts workshop held at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impacts Research from 22-26th April 2024. The event brought together over 100 researchers working on climate impacts modelling, who presented their latest research and coordinated plans for forthcoming modelling exercises. A key focus of the meeting discussions was to best position the climate impacts modelling community for supporting the forthcoming IPCC 7th Assessment Report, with a particular emphasis on Working Group 2 (WG2) on Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability.

• Ed Byers (IIASA), presented on approaches for cross-sectoral impacts assessment and the integration of impacts in integrated assessment modelling, with the intention of facilitating cross- working group consistency and collaboration. The SPARCCLE research objectives target this ambition directly through a modelling framework that will involve climate hazard modelling and emulation, granular risk assessment incorporating projections of socioeconomic vulnerabilities, and the integration of this information in the design of climate resilient development pathways.

• Bart van den Hurk, co-Chair of IPCC WG2 gave a keynote on priorities for the next reports, in particular on the latest updates and priorities for the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change in Cities. He emphasised the need to make impacts modelling relevant and actionable for urban decision makers.
• Wim Thiery, SPARCCLE lead researcher from VUB, presented on the “unprecedented” exposure of future generations to climate extremes, whilst Matthias Mengel, SPARCCLE lead researcher from PIK, convened a session on how best to ensure that impacts and adaptation modelling could support the assessment underpinning the UNFCCC Global Stocktake exercise in 2028.

About ISIMIP-PROCLIAS

Initiated in 2012 by PIK and IIASA, the ISIMIP project (Inter-Sectoral Impacts Modelling Intercomparison Project) is the leading global climate impacts modelling community, providing scientific data and assessment that has made major contributions to impacts assessment across the world.  In particular, it provided key evidence base for showing the differences in climate impacts between 1.5 and 2°C, a major feature of the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C.

PROCLIAS project (PROCESS-BASED MODELS FOR CLIMATE IMPACT ATTRIBUTION ACROSS SECTORS) aims to develop common protocols, harmonised datasets and a joint understanding of how to conduct cross-sectoral, multi-model climate impact studies at regional and global scales allowing for attribution of impacts of recent climatic changes and robust projections of future climate impacts.