A decision meant to take minutes has dragged on for nearly three years. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, whose assessments have informed every major UN climate agreement for three decades, still cannot agree when to publish its next review of the science. Without it, countries may decide the next phase of action with no consensus on critical questions, including how far some warming might be reversible.
On October 12, the IPCC’s 195 member states were expected to meet in Addis Ababa, seen as the last chance to fix dates before the November 2028 UN climate talks, when governments assess progress on the 2015 Paris Agreement.
India, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Russia and China want more time, so that scientists from less-resourced countries can contribute. The United States, its biggest funder, walked out in January.
The chairs propose all three reports by September 2028. The opponents want two pushed into 2029.
The equity complaint is real. But the answer is to fund the South’s scientists, not delay the science. When Delhi stands with Riyadh and Moscow, the fossil fuel lobby wins.
Source: The Hindu, October 2026 — https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/ipcc-deadlocked-inclusivity-concerns-reports-publishing-more-time/article71574460.ece
