The process of developing a Science Plan dates to the beginnings of the CCCA and was initiated in November 2011 with a project of the former Ministry of Science and Research and by establishing a CCCA working group.
Since then, the development of the Science Plan has been a topic at the annual CCCA General Assemblies (see the minutes of the General Assemblies 2011-2016), where the development has been presented, documented, and discussed with the representatives of the CCCA members. A detailed history of the Science Plan is available on the CCCA website.
To make the development of the Science Plan as participative and transparent as possible, the individual formative stages offered various opportunities for participation: From February 2012 to May 2013, Austrian climate researchers could participate (e.g. via workshops) in the process based on which the Science Plan’s common goals, research areas, and process steps were developed. In April and May 2016, a public comment procedure allowed everyone interested in the topic to become involved.
The CCCA community was, furthermore, kept up to date on the development of the Science Plan via the CCCA newsletter.
In addition, the Science Plan was coordinated with the Austrian Assessment Report (APCC AAR14), thus revealing issues pertinent to the current state of research. For quality assurance purposes, Review Editors accompanied the final phase of the Science Plan’s present version. In accordance with the CCCA Statutes (§10), this version was approved at CCCA’s 9th General Assembly in March 2017.