Climate Talk

Genuine question: why does the IPCC timeline matter so much?

Read the GONOM post on the Ethiopia meeting. Not trying to be contrarian, I actually want to understand this one.

The research the IPCC summarises is already published in journals. Scientists can read it, governments have their own advisors. So if the next assessment reports come a bit later, what actually changes in practice?

The post says governments might review their progress without the latest summary of the science. But is that really a big deal, or is the 'profound disappointment' mostly about the institution itself?