The Climate and Air Quality Research Group at the Korea Environment Institute (KEI) convened a roundtable to deliberate on the future directions of the Korean Panel on Climate Change (KPCC) at Courtyard by Marriott Seoul Namdaemun on March 29. Notable attendees included KEI President Dr. Chang Hoon Lee, Director General of the Climate and Air Quality Research Group, Dr. Hoon Chang, and representatives from the Ministry of Environment, KPCC Preparatory Committee, Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Research Center (GIR), and Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).

In Session 1, titled “South Korea’s Response to Global Climate Change Issues and Measures for Further Promotion,” discussions revolved around the imperative of augmenting expert capacity and bolstering external support. Strategies aimed at nurturing the expertise of climate specialists encompassed broadening the dissemination of research papers across diverse fields of climate change and facilitating opportunities for new researchers under the mentorship of seasoned professionals. Enhancing external support mechanisms entails enhancing systematic assistance from KMA and forging expert networks.

Attendees at the roundtable discussion.

During Session 2, titled “The Necessity and Future Directions of Climate Change Mitigation Assessment Reports and the 17th Annual Meeting of the Integrated Assessment Modeling Consortium (IAMC),” Dr. Dongwon Shin from KEI stressed the importance of devising incentive and governance frameworks within the domestic climate change mitigation context. Dr. Shin also underscored the significance of eliciting cooperation from businesses through a shift in perception concerning policy-related data provision, fostering collaborative endeavors among diverse stakeholders in report writing, and laying the groundwork for international research initiatives.

In addition, to ensure more proactive involvement of South Korea in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), recommendations were put forth to tailor the Working Group 3 (WG 3) report to encompass domestic conditions and to provide support to domestic researchers for their participation in the IPCC as authors. In support of the upcoming 17th annual meeting of the IAMC, scheduled to be held in South Korea this November, keywords for plenary sessions were proposed. These included artificial intelligence (AI) and climate change, technology innovation, green growth and sustainable development, and economic growth and climate change mitigation.

Group photo