Climate Risk, Modelling, and Impacts: A Collaborative Approach to Understanding and Addressing Climate Change

Organizers:

Chahan Kropf (ETH Zurich, Switzerland), Valentin Gebhart (ETH Zurich, Switzerland)


This workshop aims at the interdisciplinary exploration of climate risks, climate modelling, and the impacts of climate change on society, ecosystems, and economic systems. Potential topics include climate risk assessment and uncertainty, advances in climate modelling techniques, impacts of climate change on society, ecosystems, and economy, measurement and validation techniques, adaptation strategies and policy development, and evaluation of mitigation efforts and effectiveness. We welcome young as well as established researchers and practitioners from a broad range of fields including climate science, risk modelling, social sciences, data science and machine learning, ecology, physics, meteorology, biology, economy; and practitioners from NGOs and government institutions. Inspirational ideas for concrete collaborative projects: global state-of-the-planet stock take, what is risk and how to define it, story-narratives for possible futures, multi-dimensional stress-test scenarios, etc.

The workshop's main goal is to create a collaborative environment where experts can engage in in-depth discussions and propose actionable solutions for climate adaptation and mitigation. We employ an open-design unconference format: The number of talks will be limited in order to enable as many discussions as possible and to foster inter- and transdisciplinary collaboration. This means that there will be no fixed conference program. A few selected presenters and topics that will be addressed are listed below.

Topic

Speakers

Outcomes

Description

Climate risk disclosure

David Bresch

Risk disclosure manifest

How can climate risk disclosure be improved? Beyond single company climate risk disclosure: event-based physical risk reporting

Social-compatible SSPs

T.b.a.

Report evaluation of social-realism of SSPs

What is needed for a social climate transition?

An open journal leveraging software forge for reproducible science

Dr. Samuel Juhel + TBD (One or more person from the OpenJournals / JOSS community)

A clear roadmap for the development of such a journal and a motivated community to make it happen!

Software forges (GitLab, GitHub) are already used by e.g. the Journal of Open Source Software (JOSS) to manage the full publishing process (from submission to publication) of quality research software. This idea could be extended to all kinds of papers that rely on code-based processes, leveraging Continuous Integration and Delivery (CICD) to make papers more transparent and easier to update with new data, models, or approaches. Such an open and dynamic journal would move science publication forward.

Arts for impact communication

T.b.a.

Visual art on climate impacts

Bridging the gap between dense academic data and public understanding is no small feat. One powerful way to spark an emotional connection to science is through the lens of art. By teaming up, can scientists and artists transform complex findings into intuitive, thought-provoking renditions that truly resonate?

Biodiversity, disturbance, climate extreme and conservation

T.b.a.

Climate extreme and biodiversity framework

How to model and conceptualize the impact of climate extreme on ecosystem, biodiversity and service provision? What is a climate extreme? How may this inform conservation planning under climate change?

Climate Tipping Risks

Niki Lohmann + tbd

Interdisciplinary framework / assessment of tipping risks & uncertainties

How to analyze and quantify tipping risks from Earth system, societal, economic and governance perspectives? How do we integrate irreversibility and deep uncertainty?

Methods for climate justice in undisciplinary times

Ying-Syuan (Elaine) Huang + tbd

Shared insights into how sequencing, weighting, and leadership configurations shape research outcomes. A collectively developed map of recurring methodological and institutional tensions in inter- and trans-disciplinary climate work. Exploration of a possible short synthesis note or collaborative perspective piece emerging from the session. A small network of participants interested in advancing this conversation beyond the session.

It is widely recognised that technical fixes alone cannot address the complexity of climate change, which unfolds within social, political, cultural, and institutional contexts that shape how evidence is interpreted and mobilised. As a result, there is growing recognition that social sciences and humanities (SSH) should play a leading role in interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary climate research, particularly in framing problems, addressing epistemic injustices, and enhancing the legitimacy and uptake of climate action. This shift raises methodological and practical questions about how disciplines are sequenced and weighted, how justice and political dynamics reshape modelling assumptions and interpretations of uncertainty, and how epistemic authority is negotiated under real-world constraints such as funding, evaluation criteria, and stakeholder expectations. This session invites collective reflection on how disciplines can be “mixed” in ways that remain technically robust, institutionally feasible, and socially legitimate, while acknowledging the tensions and trade-offs such reconfigurations entail.

The workshop will take place in Benasque, a beautiful village located in the heart of the Pyrenees. The collaborative environment provided by the Centro de Ciencias in Benasque has proven highly fruitful in earlier unconference-style workshops.

The workshop will be IN-PERSON. Note that the registration is open until Jul 10 2026. The registration fee includes transportation by bus from and to Barcelona, coffee breaks with cakes and fruits for all working days, and one buffet type reception with wine and soft drinks. Information about accommodation, transport and Benasque can be found in the VISITORS section on http://benasque.org. Accommodation reservation will also be possible on this website from Jul 15 to Sep 10 2026.

Registration and acceptance.

You can register for the whole two weeks (450 eur), which is preferred and recommended, or only for one of the weeks (350 eur).
You will receive an acceptance confirmation by Jul 17 2026 at the latest. The first 75 registrations will be accepted by default. After that, if there is high request, participants who register for two weeks will be given precedence.
Please pay the registration fee only after your registration has been accepted.

Registration fee information

The registration fee for this conference is:

Two weeks fee: 450 eur.
One week fee: 350 eur.

The registration fee includes:

- organised bus transportation (reserve seat in advance)
- one reception buffet
- one coffee break with pastries a day
- use of the Centro de Ciencias facilities
- technical assistance and secretarial support


*Cancellation Policy*
A 30 euro charge will be applied for cancellations made up to 10 days before the conference start date.
A no refund policy will be applied to cancellations made after this date.

Bus transportation

The center provides free buses:
From Barcelona, Universitat de Barcelona, Diagonal 686, Metro: L3 Palau Reial at 15:00h (Note that the bus stops opposite University of Barcelona, Facultat de Física i Química)

From Barcelona airport ('El Prat', Terminal T2A: on leaving exit, turn left and you will find a police building called 'Mossos d'Esquadra'.
Cross the road using the zebra crossing and turn left. The bus will stop there) at 15:30h.

Return buses:
From Benasque to Barcelona airport and then university, departure at 9:00h.
The trip by bus to Barcelona takes 4-5h. approximately. The trip by car only takes 3h 30m.

Bus trajectories and dates:
- Barcelona-Benasque, Sep 20.
- Benasque-Barcelona, Oct 03.

Registration & accommodation

Application deadline is Jul 10

Further Information.

  • List of participants.
  • Scientific program.
  • Pictures