The Second Austrian assessment report on climate change

The Second Austrian Assessment Report on Climate Change (AAR2) offers a thorough and systematic review of the scientific literature on climate change in Austria, covering all major scientific disciplines. It builds on the findings of the First Austrian Assessment Report from 2014, as well as several Special Reports published by the Austrian Panel on Climate Change (APCC) under the leadership of the Climate Change Centre Austria (CCCA).

Achieving a climate-resilient society in Austria will require deep economic and societal transformations. These include cutting greenhouse gas emissions and reducing resource consumption, while also securing the well-being of all people living in Austria. Two key approaches to lower the resource intensity of goods and services are the circular economy—which aims to maximize resource reuse and minimize waste—and the sharing economy, which promotes access over ownership through use-as-a-service models. At the same time, an important debate continues: Is ongoing economic growth essential to support this transformation, or should efforts instead focus on reducing material consumption as a more effective path to ensuring a high quality of life for all?