The 2026 State of the Climate Report: Managing Risk As We Enter Overshoot
The 2026 State of the Climate report, published on 14 October by a group of leading climate scientists, updates the planet's vital signs. Its annual indicators cover greenhouse gases, Earth's energy imbalance and proximity to tipping points, and track the efforts to address climate change.
The report follows the UN Environment Programme's acknowledgement in September that exceeding 1.5°C is now unavoidable, and arrives as forecasters expect a very strong El Niño this winter. Ahead of COP31, this online briefing takes policymakers through the latest indicators and what they mean for the coming year: the rate of global temperature rise, what is driving Earth's growing energy imbalance, escalating risks and feedbacks, and the implications for national and international security.
A panel of scientists and policy experts will discuss what the report shows and what managing risk in overshoot involves, including the range of action that could match the scale of the risk. Audience and press questions will close the session.
Panellists
Johan Rockström, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, report co-author
Piers Forster, Priestley Centre for Climate Futures, University of Leeds; UK Climate Change Committee
Inés Camilloni, University of Buenos Aires and CONICET; Vice-Chair, IPCC Working Group I
Baroness Bryony Worthington, lead author of the Climate Change Act 2008
Laurie Laybourn, Executive Director, Strategic Climate Risks Initiative
Further panellists to be announced
Who it is for
Parliamentarians, officials, policy advisers, and climate and science reporters.
Format
Online via Zoom webinar. The link is sent on registration. Registrants receive the recording and a summary on 15 October.
Background
This briefing follows an in-person meeting at London Climate Week in June, held at the launch of the Indicators of Global Climate Change report.
Further reading:
The 2025 State of the Climate Report: A Planet on the Brink (Ripple et al.)
Indicators of Global Climate Change 2025: A Brief for Policymakers
Derailment Risk Report (Strategic Climate Risks Initiative)
Hosted by the Strategic Climate Risks Initiative.