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Alexander Bedritsky, President of WMO
Preface
Climate variability and change are posing unprecedented challenges to society. Every day, scientists are making discoveries
that shed insight into the many and varied ways climate affects the Earth system and how that impacts people and economies.
Over the last three decades, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has mobilized the international community around
the climate issue. It was WMO that in 1976 issued the first authoritative statement on the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere and the potential impacts on Earth’s climate. Since then, WMO and the National Meteorological and Hydrological
Services (NMHSs) of its 188 Member States and Territories have built a foundation of observations, research and scientific
assessment to understand climate variability and change.
There is now an urgent need to organize the global community to develop and disseminate the best-available climate information
needed by the regions and sectors, globally. WMO and its Members are rising to this challenge, developing climate research and
services to help policy-makers and decision-makers everywhere prepare for changes in climate and respond with actions informed
by the best available science. Climate predictions at the seasonal to multi-decadal scale enable key socioeconomic sectors to plan
ahead in the light of anticipated natural hazards and other weather-, water- and climate-driven phenomena. The ultimate goal is to
strengthen interactions between climate information providers and users to develop climate services that advance socioeconomic
development while ensuring hydrometeorological and environmental security around the world.
A climate information system is required to aid decision-makers in policy, infrastructure development and investment decisions.
Such a system would be based on: reliable climate predictions over timescales of seasons to decades; tailored forecasts for regions
and localities; integration of atmospheric, oceanic, terrestrial and social data into a comprehensive Earth System prediction; and
decision-support interfaces that can be adjusted to provide user-specified scenarios.
The common goal of the global community for the new decade should be to have in place such a system that enables
regional assessments that are well organized and based on the best scientific understanding and knowledge available at the time.
Furthermore, the global community should aim to deliver the needed information to the network of regional and local experts,
especially for the developing regions of the world. Such a system must build on the solid foundation of Earth observations, research
and prediction, as well as the assessment capabilities that the global community has put in place during the past 30 years, but it
must also be responsive to the needs of global and regional decision-makers.
Investing in a climate information system is the best way to ensure that our generation and future generations have the ability
to manage the risks and realize the opportunities associated with climate variability and change. WMO continues to facilitate the
exchange of climate knowledge not only among NMHSs but also with the broad international community as the UN System’s leader
in the field.
We thank Tudor Rose for providing an opportunity to highlight how WMO and its Members are working with decision-makers
and experts across all disciplines to enhance climate services for protecting people’s lives and livelihoods, and for improving the well-
being of all.
Alexander Bedritsky, President of WMO
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