The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Its establishment was prompted by the late 1980s about growing scientific evidence and public concern about climate change.
As climate change is a global issue that transcends national boundaries, the IPCC addressed the need for international collaboration by bringing together the work of scientists and experts from around the world. Its main roles are (1) to provide regular updates on the state of knowledge on climate change, and (2) to provide policymakers with the best knowledge on climate change, its impacts and potential response strategies.

The main products of the IPCC are the Assessment Reports (AR), which provide every five to seven years comprehensive summaries of the state of knowledge on climate change, based on the  contributions of thousands of scientists and experts worldwide. Between the First Assessment Report, produced in 1990 and the latest one, the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) of 2021-2022, each report has built upon the findings of its predecessors, reflecting advances in climate science and a growing understanding of the impacts and responses to climate change.

The IPCC’s reports have significantly advanced our understanding of climate change and influenced global climate policy, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement. They provide the scientific basis for international negotiations, national climate policies and action plans.

The IPCC was, jointly with US politician Albert Gore Jr., awarded in 2007 the Nobel Peace Prize “for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change.”