The call for nominations for experts and fellows for the upcoming IPBES 2nd Global Assessment is now open! For this 2nd Global Assessment, which will be a landmark international report providing the best available scientific evidence to support global agreements such as the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, including assessing progress made against its targets and guiding future policies needed to achieve its goals, IPBES are seeking:
- experts and practitioners to participate as authors in the 2nd Global Assessment, and
- early career individuals who wish to gain experience as part of the IPBES fellowship programme for the 2nd Global Assessment.
Further details on each of these positions, including the types of expertise required and the length of commitment, can be found in the relevant notification (for experts, and for fellows). If you are interested in one of these positions, please apply by following the instructions found in the relevant notification. Please note the deadline for applications is 28th March 2025.
The application form will include a section titled “Nominating Body”. Nominations can either be supported by government members of IPBES, or by a relevant organisation. You are free to seek whichever you prefer, but for a typical expert team, at least 80% of the selected experts must come from government nominations, with the remaining 20% from other organizations. To seek a nomination from the UK Government (DEFRA), you should select ‘Government’ under ‘Type of nominating body’, then select ‘United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland’ under both ‘Government’ and ‘National Focal Point’. Your application will automatically be forwarded to DEFRA.
At this point, DEFRA will review the range of applications received and select which to endorse and forward on to IPBES. The IPBES Multidisciplinary Expert Panel (MEP) will then select experts from the nominations that have been endorsed by governments or other organisations, taking into account expertise, regional balance and gender balance. For further information on the process, please see https://jncc.gov.uk/our-work/how-to-become-an-ipbes-expert/.
Please note that the role of an IPBES expert/fellow is a significant time commitment, expected to take between 10-30% of a person’s time, depending on the role in question. Further information on the roles and time commitments can be found in the Guide for Newly Nominated Experts and the Additional Guidance for Nominated and Selected Fellows. You will be expected to demonstrate in your application that you understand and can commit to the time required. To be nominated by the UK Government, you will either need to be a British National or working in a British institution.
Defra will be hosting a webinar on Monday 24th February at 3:30pm GMT to provide further information on the process; if you’re interested in attending, please join via this link. There will also be a virtual dialogue hosted by IPBES on 12th March 2025 at 1pm CET so keep your eye out on the IPBES website for more information on that as and when further details are released.
