Report of the 58th meeting of the IAI Executive Council

The report details the 58th meeting of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) Executive Council, held via videoconference on November 6, 2024. The meeting focused on the relocation of the IAI headquarters to Panama, updates on scientific initiatives including tropical forest and ocean research, the development of a Science Diplomacy Center, and the establishment of an Indigenous Peoples’ Advisory Committee.

• The IAI has successfully relocated its headquarters from Uruguay to Panama. An agreement for the establishment of the headquarters was signed with Panama's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on June 21, 2024, and the Directorate is currently operating from a temporary office at the City of Knowledge, with a permanent office expected by early 2025.
• The IAI launched the Tropical Forests Collaborative Research Action (CRA) in partnership with the Belmont Forum and Brazil's Research and Innovation Support Foundation of Santa Catarina State (FAPESC). This initiative included a training program with 20 teams from 13 countries and resulted in the selection of nine project proposals for seed grant funding.
• The IAI is preparing for a Belmont Forum Ocean CRA, anticipated to launch in June 2025 during the UN Oceans Conference in France. This call is intended to support global research priorities for islands, coasts, and oceans.
• The Science Diplomacy Center (SDC) is operating under three pillars: Capacity Building, Emerging Issues (such as AI, quantum technologies, and blockchain), and a Science Diplomacy Repository. A science diplomacy curriculum co-created with the University of São Paulo is scheduled to launch in early 2025.
• The IAI is establishing an Indigenous Peoples’ Advisory Committee (IPAC) to advise the Conference of the Parties on the strategic plan, scientific agenda, and the implementation of gender, equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) policies. The committee will initially consist of five indigenous experts from member countries, with selection to be finalized by early 2025.
• The IAI is expanding its educational offerings through its virtual campus, including two new open courses on Scientific Diplomacy and Transdisciplinary Research, and a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) course developed in partnership with NASA.
• The 33rd Conference of the Parties (CoP-33) and the 59th Executive Council meeting (EC-59) are scheduled to be hosted by Paraguay in late May 2025, specifically on May 28, 29, and 30.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2024). Report of the 58th meeting of the IAI Executive Council. https://iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/EC-58%20final%20report%20draft-en.pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Report of the 58th meeting of the IAI Executive Council. 2024. https://iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/EC-58%20final%20report%20draft-en.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Report of the 58th meeting of the IAI Executive Council |date=3 December 2024 |url=https://iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/EC-58%20final%20report%20draft-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 58th meeting of the IAI Executive Council}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2024}, month = dec, url = {https://iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/EC-58%20final%20report%20draft-en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }