Inuit Circumpolar Council, first Indigenous Peoples Organization to formally participate as an Observer at the IPCC

March 1, 2022 – Anchorage, Alaska – For the first time in the history of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an Indigenous Peoples Organization has participated as an official Observer at an IPCC approval session. The Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) was granted Observer status to the IPCC in February 2020 marking the first time an Indigenous Peoples Organization has been recognized as a formal Observer.

Over the weekend, the IPCC – the international body that produces assessment reports of the science around climate change –concluded its 55^th session alongside the approval session for the Working Group 2 (WGII) Summary for Policy Makers (SPM). The entire WGII report on Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability, including the SPM, was released yesterday.

As the WGII approval session came to a close, ICC International Chair, Dr. Dalee Sambo Dorough, took the floor to make a formal intervention. She briefly introduced the ICC and provided comments on the inclusion of the rights of Indigenous peoples and Indigenous knowledge in the SPM:

“…we are happy to note the importance of recognition of the inherent rights of Indigenous Peoples, in the context of successful forest adaptation. An essential component of these rights is our right of self-determination, and we hope to see this recognition of rights extended to all types of adaptation and mitigation measures.”

This intervention was the last before the WGII meeting concluded providing a historic moment in IPCC history and a significant step forward in enhancing Indigenous engagement in the IPCC process.

Last year, in August 2021, the release of the Working Group 1 report on the Physical Science Basis led to the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, declaring a “code red for humanity”. The Working Group 3 report on Mitigation of Climate Change is set be released in April this year.

The report released yesterday outlines an array of adverse impacts across the world due to human-induced climate change. “The approved report and summary for policy makers is yet another assessment that highlights widespread and alarming observed and projected impacts for the Arctic region across all sectors. This information echoes what Inuit have said and continue to say based on our intricate knowledge and lived experience, our firsthand observations,” said Dr. Sambo Dorough.

Over the past several years, ICC has actively participated in the IPCC’s 6^th Assessment Cycle as an expert reviewer and a contributing author to several of the reports including the Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC), released in September 2019, and the Cross-Chapter Paper on Polar Regions in WGII’s report released yesterday. Within this contribution has been an emphasis on Indigenous self-determination in research and Indigenous leadership in transformative adaptation and climate resilience.

In partnership with the Government of Canada, ICC participated in past IPCC approval sessions as part of the Canadian delegation. This positive partnership was continued during this past session and is exemplary of how state party members can support and work with Indigenous Peoples organizations.

As Dr. Sambo Dorough noted at the end of her intervention, “The ICC has been working with the IPCC to ensure that consideration is given to Indigenous Knowledge in future assessments, and we look forward to continuing this important work.”

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