IPCC Stalls Over Next Climate Report Timeline
Member countries failed to agree on releasing the panel's next global warming update, a delay its chairman warns could damage its standing.
Updated on Nov. 9, 2026 in Environmental
Member countries of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change failed to agree at their October meeting on publishing the next update to the panel's global warming assessment. IPCC chairman Jim Skea warned that the delay risks damaging the panel's standing.
Why it matters
The IPCC normally releases an update every five to seven years, and the impasse leaves the timing of its seventh assessment report unresolved. The divide between countries seeking delay and those pushing for faster climate action is affecting the body's operations and reputation.
The IPCC's next major study is divided into three working group reports, and the October meeting ended without a release date agreed for them. Member countries have not resolved whether the timeline should be delayed or accelerated, and the outcome of the December 1 talks is not yet known.
The players
Jim Skea
Jim Skea is the chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the UN body that assesses climate science for policymakers.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
The IPCC is the United Nations body that assesses the science related to climate change and produces comprehensive global warming reports.
The details
The IPCC's last meeting in October ended without member countries agreeing to publish the next update, with some countries wanting delay and others wanting faster action to keep global temperatures down. The panel now faces operational challenges and reputational risks, and it will hold new talks on December 1 to bid again to agree a release date and set a budget.
Timeline
Every five to seven years: the IPCC normally releases a global warming update.
October 2026: the IPCC meeting ended without agreement on the next update.
November 9, 2026: IPCC chairman Jim Skea warned of damage to the panel's standing.
December 1, 2026: the IPCC begins new talks on the release timeline.
Big Picture
The seventh assessment report is delayed relative to the IPCC's normal five-to-seven-year publication cycle, which the panel has historically kept to in producing its global warming updates. The timing dispute now sits alongside the UN Climate Change conference (COP31) in Turkey, where climate policy is also being negotiated.
The timing of the IPCC's next report determines when updated global warming projections become available to governments planning emissions cuts. Delays push back the scientific baseline that national climate policies and negotiations rely on.
The takeaway
The seventh IPCC assessment report remains unscheduled, so the timing of the scientific baseline for global climate policy is still in dispute. Readers tracking climate policy should watch the outcome of the December 1 talks.
What happens next
The IPCC will begin new talks on December 1, 2026, to bid again for agreement on a release date and budget for its seventh assessment report.
Further reading
For broader background on the science behind these reports, see Environmental coverage.
