The Climate Overshoot Commission is the result of a high-level process that explored the necessary conditions for a robust and science-based global dialogue on governance gaps relating to response options to climate change beyond emissions reductions. Initial discussions supported by the Paris Peace Forum, UCLA, and Harvard University led to the creation of a Steering Committee. It consisted of diverse experts, policymakers, and civil society leaders from the global North and global South, including a vice-chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a former president of the Marshall Islands, and officials associated with the 2022 UN climate change conference. The Steering Committee considered how to address these gaps and to build shared understanding regarding the novel governance challenges. After more than a year of deliberations, the Steering Committee suggested the formation of a Global Commission on Governing Risks from Climate Overshoot.

 

The Commission and its Secretariat were formed in early 2022.