Gaps in Knowledge
24. Advances have been made since previous IPCC assessments
in the understanding of the scientific, technical, environmental, and economic
and social aspects of mitigation of climate change. Further research is required,
however, to strengthen future assessments and to reduce uncertainties as far
as possible in order that sufficient information is available for policy making
about responses to climate change, including research in developing countries.
The following are high priorities for further narrowing gaps between current
knowledge and policy making needs:
- Further exploration of the regional, country and sector specific potentials
of technological and social innovation options. This includes research
on the short, medium and long-term potential and costs of both CO2
and non-CO2, non-energy mitigation options; understanding of technology
diffusion across different regions; identifying opportunities in the area
of social innovation leading to decreased greenhouse gas emissions; comprehensive
analysis of the impact of mitigation measures on carbon flows in and out of
the terrestrial system; and some basic inquiry in the area of geo-engineering.
- Economic, social and institutional issues related to climate change mitigation
in all countries. Priority areas include: analysis of regionally specific
mitigation options and barriers; the implications of equity assessments; appropriate
methodologies and improved data sources for climate change mitigation and
capacity building in the area of integrated assessment; strengthening future
research and assessments, especially in the developing countries.
- Methodologies for analysis of the potential of mitigation options and
their cost, with special attention to comparability of results. Examples
include: characterizing and measuring barriers that inhibit greenhouse gas-reducing
action; making mitigation modelling techniques more consistent, reproducible,
and accessible; modelling technology learning; improving analytical tools
for evaluating ancillary benefits, e.g. assigning the costs of abatement to
greenhouse gases and to other pollutants; systematically analyzing the dependency
of costs on baseline assumptions for various greenhouse gas stabilization
scenarios; developing decision analytical frameworks for dealing with uncertainty
as well as socio-economic and ecological risk in climate policy making; improving
global models and studies, their assumptions and their consistency in the
treatment and reporting of non-Annex I countries and regions.
- Evaluating climate mitigation options in the context of development,
sustainability and equity. Examples include: exploration of alternative
development paths, including sustainable consumption patterns in all sectors,
including the transportation sector; integrated analysis of mitigation and
adaptation; identifying opportunities for synergy between explicit climate
policies and general policies promoting sustainable development; integration
of intra- and inter-generational equity in climate change mitigation analysis;
implications of equity assessments; analysis of scientific, technical and
economic implications of options under a wide variety of stabilization regimes.
