IAI SAC Report to CoP JUNE 2016

The June 2016 report from the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) to the Conference of the Parties (CoP) outlines recommendations for the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) to better address regional crises in the Americas through integrated natural and social science research, restructured funding calls, and improved data infrastructure.

• The SAC identifies a critical need for the CoP to prioritize research themes that address regional crises, including the devastating April 2016 earthquakes in coastal Ecuador, disease outbreaks (Zika, Chikungunya, Dengue Fever), and increasing extreme droughts and floods.
• The SAC recommends restructuring IAI calls for proposals to be more frequent (every one to two years) and tiered by scale: large multi-year projects (3-5 years, million-dollar scale), mid-scale projects (2-3 years, hundreds of thousands of dollars), and small grants (under 1-2 years, tens to hundred thousand dollars).
• The Americas currently lack a regional framework or infrastructure to host and distribute data and research products to the public and decision-makers. The IAI is engaging with the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) via the AmeriGEOSS initiative to address this.
• The SAC proposes four priority research areas for the next 1-5 years: the food-water-energy nexus (including food security and water as a security driver), disaster risk reduction (DRR) focusing on multiple stressors and infrastructure, changes in production and consumption patterns, and biodiversity across coastal, marine, freshwater, and terrestrial ecosystems.
• Lessons learned from the CRN3 program indicate that social scientists must be involved from the beginning of a project rather than as an 'add-on' at the end, and that teams of social and natural scientists should be trained jointly with policy makers during the proposal writing stage.
• The SAC recommends that CoP members use a co-funding model based on the Belmont Forum and integrate research results into regular reporting for international conventions such as the CBD and UNFCCC (INDCs).

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (n.d.). IAI SAC Report to CoP JUNE 2016. https://archive.iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/iai-cop-24-sac-report-e.pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. IAI SAC Report to CoP JUNE 2016. n.d. https://archive.iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/iai-cop-24-sac-report-e.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=IAI SAC Report to CoP JUNE 2016 |url=https://archive.iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/iai-cop-24-sac-report-e.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearchndiai, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{IAI SAC Report to CoP JUNE 2016}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, url = {https://archive.iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/iai-cop-24-sac-report-e.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }