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A close-up of dense peatland or bog vegetation, showing a rich mix of yellow-green sphagnum moss, reddish-brown sedges, and wispy grasses in warm autumnal tones.

ICOS at COP31

09 Nov 2026 to 20 Nov 2026

ICOS joins the UN climate conference in Antalya with two events: Finland’s official side event on carbon balance in land-use ecosystems, and an ocean carbon observation roundtable in the Virtual Ocean Pavilion.

COP, the Conference of the Parties, is the annual UN climate summit where countries that have signed the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) meet to review progress and negotiate further action. COP31 takes place in Antalya, Türkiye, 9 - 20 November 2026. Alongside the negotiations, hundreds of side events let scientists, policymakers, businesses and civil society share evidence and ideas.

High-quality, long-term observations are what climate decisions rest on, and ICOS contributes with its measurements of greenhouse gases across the atmosphere, ecosystems and oceans.

The importance of an integrated framework for AFOLU carbon balance - from boreal to tropical peatlands

Finland’s official side event at COP31

Date: Thursday 12 November 2026, 18:30-20:00 (local time, Antalya)
Location: Side Event Room 2 - DALYAN, Register here. 

Co-hosted by HIKET project, ICOS ERIC, Landscape Alliance and the Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of 
Indonesia. Supported by the Ministry of the Environment of Finland

Agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) both emit and absorb large amounts of carbon, and reliable numbers on this balance are essential for climate policy and business decisions. This event will demonstrate how countries can move beyond individual greenhouse gas data streams to integrated, observation-based land-sector systems that make uncertainty visible and usable across boreal and tropical contexts for policy implementation, transparency reporting and the Global Stocktake.

Programme 

Chair: Prof. Tuukka Petäjä, Director of the Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research (INAR), 
University of Helsinki, Finland

Opening 

  • Opening speeches from Alexander Stubb, the President of the Republic of Finland and a High-level representative of the Republic of Indonesia (TBC) 
  • Framing the topic: towards 350 ppm and below by Prof. Tuukka Petäjä, Director of the Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research (INAR), University of Helsinki, Finland  

Integrated Framework

  • G3W and national initiatives to better understand sources and sinks of GHG’s by Prof. Annalea Lohila, Head of Climate system research unit, Finnish Meteorological Institute 
  • From standardized observations to trusted climate reporting: insights from ICOS by Dr. Hannele Laine, Director General of ICOS ERIC 
  • Scrutinizing GHG emissions from tropical peatlands by Prof. Daniel Murdiyarso, PhD, Senior Associate, Landscape Alliance

Panel Discussion: Developing MRV across the boreal-tropical region: a Finnish-Indonesian collaboration

Moderator: Emmanuel Salmon, Head of Strategy & International Cooperation, ICOS ERIC 

  • Prof. Markku Kanninen, Professor Emeritus at the Department of Forest Sciences of the 
    University of Helsinki, Finland 
  • Dr. Haruni Krisnawati, Senior Advisor to the Minister of Forestry for Climate Change, Ministry of 
    Forestry of the Republic of Indonesia, Lead Coordinator of the International Tropical Peatlands 
    Center (ITPC).  
  • Dr. Johanna Buchert, Director-General, Natural Resources Institute Finland  
  • Dr. Stephen Hammer, Global climate policy & finance advisor, University of Pennsylvania 
  • D.Sc. Bill Hare, CEO / Senior Scientist, Climate Analytics 

 

 

Ocean carbon sink: observing needs and opportunities

Date: Monday 9 November 2026, 13:00-14:30 (local time, Antalya), 11:00-12:30 CET
Location: Online, register here.

Organised by Dr. Natalya Gallo, NORCE, Dr. Richard Sanders, Director of ICOS Ocean Thematic Centre and Research Proffesor at NORCE, Jula Falvey, Seascape Belgium

Held in alignment with Earth Information Day at COP31, this roundtable will examine the role of ocean carbon observations within the UNFCCC's research and systematic observation agenda. Earth Information Day provides a forum for Parties and the scientific community to exchange information on the state of the climate system and advances in systematic observations that support climate action. 

The discussion will highlight European investments through the Horizon Europe projects OceanICU, TRICUSO, and JOHN, which are advancing ocean carbon observations, data integration, and policy-relevant climate services. Against a backdrop of geopolitical change and increasing pressure on long-term observing programmes, participants will discuss how Europe and international partners can help sustain critical ocean observing capacity. The roundtable will identify priorities for strengthening the ocean carbon observing value chain, improving governance and coordination, and securing the long-term financing needed to support robust climate information and effective climate policy.

Programme

Panelist: Richard Sanders (moderator), ICOS Ocean Thematic Centre Director, Research Professor at the Norwegian Research Centre (NORCE), Larisa Lorinczi, Policy officer in European research and innovation at the European Commission, Philippe Ciais, Climate researcher at the Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, Siv Lauvset, Senior Researcher at NORCE, Paul Trautendorfer, Science-policy advisor at JPI Oceans, Andrew Watson, Senior Researcher at the University of Exeter, Louise Delaigue, postdoctoral fellow at Sorbonne University.

  • Welcome and introductions
  • Setting the scientific context: the ocean carbon sink
  • Are current ocean carbon observations sufficient?
  • From observations to climate policy
  • Strengthening observing capacity: practical opportunities
  • Investment, coordination, and long-term sustainability
  • Reflections (both from panelists and audience members)
  • Looking ahead: one priority for the next decade
  • Closing remarks