Summary for Policymakers: Summary for Policymakers of the Second Austrian Assessment Report on Climate Change (AAR2)

This Summary for Policymakers (SPM) presents key findings of the Second Austrian Assessment Report on Climate Change (AAR2). The AAR2 provides a comprehensive, interdisciplinary assessment of the current scientific knowledge on climate change and related risks for Austria. It illustrates the range of climate impacts under different global warming levels and identifies potential mitigation strategies, adaptation measures and transformation pathways. The report closely follows the structure and processes of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

This Summary for Policymakers is structured along five policy-relevant guiding questions:

A. Is Austria on track to climate neutrality?

B. What are the impacts of climate change in Austria?

C. Which mitigation options are available?

D. How can Austria meet climate targets?

E. Which policies can support effective and equitable climate governance?

More than 200 researchers and scientists collaborated to produce this report, and more than 100 external reviewers participa­ted in the multi-stage scientific peer review process. The assessment builds on the first Austrian Assessment Report on Climate Change published in 2014 and a series of subsequent Special Reports coordinated by the Austrian Panel on Climate Change (APCC) and the Climate Change Centre Austria (CCCA).

The scientific evidence for each key message in this Summary for Policymakers is drawn from the eight chapters of the AAR2. Following the calibrated language of the IPCC, a confidence statement is assigned to each key message to indicate the strength of the scientific evidence and level of agreement in the literature.

In line with IPCC conventions, this assessment does not prescribe any specific policy measures or interventions. Instead, the report discusses alternative options for mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and measures for adaptation to the impacts of climate change, highlighting synergies and trade-offs of specific climate actions with other societal priorities such as reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The AAR2 is conscious of the links and dependencies between climate change mitigation, adaptation, human well-being and sustainable development, as well as their trade-offs.

The ambition of this report is to provide relevant input to the broader discussion on an effective transition to a climate-­resilient society, facilitating evidence-based decision-making and a well-informed public debate.