Report of the 31st meeting of the Conference of the Parties

This briefing document, prepared by the IAI Directorate, presents the report of the 31st meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP-31) held on 21-22 June 2023 in Panama City, Panama. The document outlines the administrative, financial, and scientific decisions made during the meeting, including the approval of budgets, the election of leadership, and the establishment of new initiatives such as the Science Diplomacy Center and an Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities Advisory Committee.

• The Conference of the Parties (CoP-31) approved the Core Budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year and the preliminary request for 2024-2026. The IAI Executive Director noted that voluntary contributions from Parties have not increased in over 30 years, which has compromised the organization's financial health.
• CoP-31 approved the creation of the IAI Science Diplomacy Center and its initial three-year work plan. The Center is intended to facilitate dialogue on emerging technologies like AI, Quantum, and Block-Chain to address global environmental change, and to train government officials in science diplomacy tools.
• The IAI is establishing two new advisory committees to improve equity and inclusion: a standing Gender, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) committee and an Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities Advisory Committee (IP&LC-AC). The latter will provide recommendations on the IAI Strategic Plan, the Scientific Agenda, and the annual program.
• The IAI Directorate was instructed to establish research and training programs focusing on two specific nexuses: climate, environment, and health (in partnership with the Pan American Health Organization), and oceans, islands, and coastal systems (aligned with the UN Decade of Ocean Science).
• A regional assessment conducted by the IAI revealed that climate action is currently the most important global change policy priority for Parties, followed by biodiversity and ecosystem services, and water security. Emerging priorities include poverty, inequality, and human health and well-being.
• The IAI will participate in the HydroClimate Research Program of the Andes (ANDEX) under the World Climate Research Programme to link it with other platforms and communicate advances to Parties.
• To reduce costs and the carbon footprint, the Conference of the Parties decided to meet in person every two years, with virtual meetings held in the intervening years.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2024). Report of the 31st meeting of the Conference of the Parties. https://archive.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/CoP-32-2a-en.pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Report of the 31st meeting of the Conference of the Parties. 2024. https://archive.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/CoP-32-2a-en.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Report of the 31st meeting of the Conference of the Parties |date=11 April 2024 |url=https://archive.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/CoP-32-2a-en.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch2024report, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{Report of the 31st meeting of the Conference of the Parties}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2024}, month = apr, url = {https://archive.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/CoP-32-2a-en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }