A Colombian among the 200 scientists from around the world who wrote the most comprehensive study on climate change

Jacobo Arango is one of 200 scientists in the world who wrote the third segment of the sixth report produced by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on mitigation. Arango holds a PhD in Biology from the University of Freiburg, Germany, participated in chapter three of the report, entitled “Mitigation pathways compatible with long-term objectives”

Experts volunteer to evaluate scientific articles published each year to provide a comprehensive summary of what is known about the causes of climate change, its future impacts and risks, and how adaptation and mitigation can reduce those risks.

“Being an author of the IPCC is a challenge that has many implications, the report we are working on will be a guideline for decision makers and governments, because it is a compilation of many research on a specific topic in mitigation. Therefore, it must be written in clear language so that countries can use this information and make better science-based decisions,” Arando told the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (IATTC).

The researcher advised the agriculture, forests and land-use change part. The report highlights that for 2019 accounted for 22% of emissions, surpassed by the energy sector (34%) and industry (24%). In the case of Colombia, however, land-use change and agriculture account for about 58% of the national share of emissions.

Arango has been dedicated to investigating how to reduce emissions from agriculture and, especially, in livestock farming. “I don't work on the subject of modeling, but to develop the chapter, sectoral experts were also called to interpret these scenarios from each sector,” he told El Espectador.

Among the findings of the report are that North America, Europe, Australia, Japan and New Zealand had 22% of the world's population in 2019, but contributed 43% of historical cumulative CO2 emissions between 1850-2019. Africa and South Asia had 61% of the world's population in 2019, but only contributed 11%.

At the IPCC, scientists emphasized that combating climate change at this point must also sequester carbon from the atmosphere, a mission in which it would win it well could play a role.

“There is evidence that at least 18 countries have been able to reduce their emissions. And also the IPCC points out that climate action policies have avoided 3 to 10% of emissions. It's not all that is needed, but this says it is possible. It's positive,” said Arango.

It should be noted that within the inquiry they carried out a review process in which more than 50,000 qualifications and comments have been made. This is the result of a work of 8 years of analysis and study that separates this last report from the previous one in 2013. The experts included more than 15,000 academic references in a report that leaves unequivocal and definite judgments about the reality facing the planet.

Arando has conducted research that focuses on how forage and efficient land use in the livestock sector can reduce nitrogen and carbon emissions, and leads the LiveStockPlus project, supported by the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS). project that facilitates the development and implementation of Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMA) in Costa Rica and Colombia. He holds a Ph.D. in plant science from the University of Freiburg in Germany and did postdoctoral research at Michigan State University and CIAT.