Union of Concerned Scientists Experts Attending COP31 in Türkiye, Available for Interviews on UN Climate Talks

WASHINGTON-Experts from the U.S.-based Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) will be attending this year's annual United Nations climate change talks (also referred to as COP31), which are being held in Antalya, Türkiye from November 9-20. They will join officials from more than 190 nations-as well as representatives of subnational governments, businesses and other nongovernmental organizations-participating in these crucial talks aimed at advancing progress toward the goals of the Paris Agreement. The Trump administration has exited the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement and is not expected to send an official delegation to Antalya.

UCS experts have launched a blog series on key COP31 issues and will be regularly adding commentary here.

The first blogpost in the series, "COP31 in Türkiye: Can Climate Talks Deliver Amid Worsening Disasters, Rising Fossil Fuel Energy Costs and Global Conflicts?" highlights the climate, economic and geopolitical context in which these talks are happening. It also identifies five key priorities for these negotiations to be successful:

• A global electrification target that advances a transition away from fossil fuels to renewable energy;
• Prioritization of adaptation and loss and damage;
• Climate negotiations guided by the best available science from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC);
• Richer countries ramping up their grossly insufficient climate finance commitments;
• Driving forward climate ambition in a new world order.

UCS experts have extensive experience doing live and taped TV, radio, podcast, and print interviews with major national and international media outlets. Please contact UCS Communications Officer Daela Taeoalii-Tipton if you have questions or would like to arrange interviews with these experts before, during or after the negotiations. She will be attending the U.N. climate talks in-person and will be in Antalya, Türkiye from November 7-22.

UCS Experts Attending COP31 in Türkiye:

Dr. Rachel Cleetus, the Climate Program director at UCS. Dr. Cleetus leads an interdisciplinary team conducting research to advance understanding of the latest climate science and the impacts of climate change, as well as advocating for just solutions to address this pressing global challenge. She has been attending the U.N.'s international climate talks and partnering with the international community on climate and energy policies for over 20 years. Dr. Cleetus can discuss the overall state of play of the UNFCCC negotiations, the latest climate science (including the implications of the overshoot of 1.5°C of global warming, and reports from the U.N., IPCC and International Energy Agency), countries' emissions reduction plans (Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs), climate finance, adaptation, loss and damage, a transition away from fossil fuels, pathways to reducing U.S. heat-trapping emissions, consequences of the Trump administration's attacks on climate and clean energy policies, and the risks and costs of climate change impacts. She is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts and will be attending the U.N. climate talks in Türkiye from November 6-22. Click here for Dr. Cleetus' biography and a list of her peer-reviewed publications. Her latest blog posts can be found here.

Kate Cell, the climate campaign director at UCS and Climate Action Against Disinformation (CAAD) steering committee member and policy working group co-chair. Cell manages the UCS team of scientists, policy analysts, legislative affairs staff, and outreach and communication experts who are campaigning to reduce U.S. global warming emissions and increase resilience to climate change impacts. Cell can discuss climate disinformation and efforts to combat it. She is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts and will be attending the U.N. climate talks in Türkiye from November 6-14. Click here for Cell's biography and her latest blog posts can be found here.

Dr. Carly Phillips, the senior scientist for the Fossil Fuel Accountability Program at UCS. Dr. Phillips provides scientific evidence to support legal cases that hold fossil fuel companies accountable for climate-related damages and deceptive practices. As the senior scientist for the Science Hub for Climate Litigation at UCS, she also connects legal teams with scientists working at the intersection of climate science and law. Dr. Phillips can speak to loss and damage litigation, the U.N. International Court of Justice advisory opinion process, deception and interference from fossil fuel interests at COP, and climate and source attribution science. She can also discuss the role of the IPCC in informing global climate action, including key outcomes from the recent IPCC plenary meeting. She is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts and will be attending the U.N. climate talks in Türkiye from November 12-22. Click here for Dr. Phillip's biography and her latest blog posts can be found here.

Other UCS Experts Available in the United States:

Kathy Mulvey, the Fossil Fuel Accountability Program director at UCS. Mulvey leads UCS's work to expose and challenge the deceptive and destructive conduct of major fossil fuel corporations and provide research, expertise, and visibility to litigation and other efforts seeking to hold these corporations and their surrogates accountable for fraud and climate damages. Mulvey has attended previous COPs and can discuss the need for nations to uphold their agreement to transition away from fossil fuels, corporate accountability for major fossil fuel polluters, fossil fuel industry deception and disinformation campaigns, and precedents from the global tobacco treaty for protecting public policy from corporate conflicts of interest at the international and national levels. She is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts and can take media requests remotely. Click here for Mulvey's biography. Her latest blog posts can be found here.

Relevant UCS Analyses and Resources:

• All blog posts related to COP31
• Blog posts on overshoot of 1.5°C of global warming
• Blog posts on climate disinformation
• All blogposts related to the second Trump administration's attacks on science and science-based policies
• Super El Niño blog post series
• Blog post on ocean warming
• "Decades of Deceit: The Case Against Major Fossil Fuel Companies for Climate Fraud and Damages," report found here