IG3IS History

Accurate long-term atmospheric measurements of greenhouse gases (GHG) are key to understanding their role in climate change, seen in rising global temperatures and sea levels, glacial retreat, and more. The urgency and complexity of the problem demand strategic investment in science-based information for planning and tracking emission reduction policies and actions.

Recognizing the need for an improved scientific understanding of human activities' increasing influence on atmospheric composition and subsequent environmental impacts, WMO established the Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) Programme in 1989. The Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) recognizes greenhouse gas (GHG) measurements from GAW as a key component of its implementation plan under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

WMO started developing an Integrated Global Greenhouse Gas Information System (IG³IS) in 2013 as a "science-for-services" initiative based on GAW successes and progress in atmospheric measurements and modelling since 2010. In 2015, the 17th World Meteorological Congress passed a resolution initiating the development of IG³IS. GAW launched its new implementation plan in 2016, focusing on “science for services” to better meet user needs. Later, GAW developed the Implementation Plan for IG³IS, which the WMO Executive Council approved in 2018.

In 2019, the IPCC Task Force on National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (TFI) recommended incorporating more information on top-down approaches, such as IG3IS, into the 2019 Refinements to the IPCC 2006 Inventory Guidelines.

Timeline

1989	Establishment of the Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) Programme
Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) Programme of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) was established to recognize the need for improved scientific understanding of the increasing influence of human activities on atmospheric composition and subsequent environmental impacts.
2006	Specific countries to report GHG inventories following IPCC guidelines
UNFCCC requires that certain countries report their annual greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories. These inventory reports are produced according to the statistical methods outlined in the 2006 Guidelines of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Task Force on National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (IPCC TFI)
2010	Independent studies to evaluate and enhance GHG emission estimates
The atmospheric, carbon cycle and climate change science communities produced a number of studies on the potential for atmospheric GHG concentration measurements and model analyses to independently evaluate and help to inform improved estimates of GHG emission [e.g., Verifying Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Methods to Support International Climate Agreements (NAS 2010); GEO Carbon Strategy (GEO 2010); IPCC Task Force on National GHG Inventories: Expert Meeting Report on Uncertainty and Validation of Emission Inventories (IPCC 2010)]. These studies concluded that a realization of this approach would require additional investment in research, increasing the density of well-calibrated atmospheric GHG measurements and improving atmospheric transport modelling and data assimilation capabilities
2015	Initiation of IG³IS
In June 2015, the 17th World Meteorological Congress requested a plan for an Integrated Global Greenhouse Gas Information System (IG3IS). UNFCCC Parties forged the Paris Agreement in December 2015, codifying the idea of nationally determined contributions (NDCs)
2016	Approval of IG³IS Concept Paper
Historically, GHG measurements have been made in remote locations that optimized the sampling frequency of global background concentrations. In 2016, GAW launched a new implementation plan built on the concept of “science for services” and bringing an increased user orientation to the program.
2018	The IG³IS Science Implementation Plan and the first Symposium
The 70th WMO Executive Council accepts the IG³IS Science Implementation Plan and officially recognizes IG³IS as the benchmarking initiative for standards and methodologies for atmospheric inversions, which help guide emission reduction policies and actions. WMO hosted the First IG³IS Symposium and User Summit at WMO Headquarters in Geneva to bring together key users from various sectors to engage in dialogue with the technical developers of IG3IS information.
2019	Acknowledgement of IG³IS by SBSTA
The 50th session of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) recognized that IG³IS is an innovative science-based framework that supports the needs of a broad range of users by combining atmospheric observations with other sources of information to enhance understanding of greenhouse gas concentrations and fluxes at multiple spatial scales and encouraged the use of the framework. IPCC Plenary approves 2019 Refinement of 2006 Guideline on National Emission Inventory that includes reference to IG³IS in the section related to inventory quality control.
2020	First IG3IS Stakeholder Consultation
The first episode of a series of consultations brought together users, scientists, and civil society to discuss how to upscale IG3IS activities across countries, regions, cities, and sectors, and to reflect on examples of where observation-based information has successfully guided climate action.
2021	IG³IS Stakeholder Consultation – LULUCF
The second episode of consultations brought together users, scientists, and civil society to discuss scaling up IG³IS activities. It highlighted successful examples of using observation-based information to guide climate action in the Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sector.
2022	First IG³IS Urban-scale Good Research Practice Guidelines
IG³IS released the first version of the IG³IS Urban Greenhouse Gas Emission Observation and Monitoring Good Research Practice Guidelines. The guidelines ensure consistency and transparency, enabling cities, researchers, and policymakers to assess the quality of emissions data and make informed decisions.
2023	IG3IS Stakeholder Consultations and User Summit
This event followed the first successful consultations conducted face-to-face in 2018 and a series of online events during the COVID19 period. The IG³IS Stakeholder Summit demonstrated broad engagement between greenhouse gas scientists and stakeholders.
2024	Launch of IG³IS Webinar Series
IG³IS launched a yearlong webinar series to showcase ongoing projects and case studies that use IG³IS methodologies. The webinar series invites speakers from around the globe to share their experiences on national, sectoral, or facility-scale IG³IS implementation.
2025	First IG³IS National-scale Good Research Practice Guidelines
IG³IS is going to release the first version of the IG3IS National-scale Greenhouse Gas Emission Observation and Monitoring Good Research Practice Guidelines to highlight emerging science-based approaches that can improve emissions tracking, assess their impact on global warming, and inform policies aimed at reducing these emissions.