The process of developing a Science Plan goes back to the early days of CCCA and was kicked off in November 2011 through a project by the then Ministry of Science and Research and the establishment of a CCCA working group.
Since then, the development of the Science Plan has been a topic at the annual CCCA General Assemblies (see minutes of the General Assemblies 2011–2016), with its progress documented and presented, and discussed with CCCA member representatives. The detailed history of its development can be found on the CCCA website.
To make the development of the Science Plan as participatory and transparent as possible, various opportunities for involvement were offered at different stages of the process: From February 2012 to May 2013, an extensive participation process took place among Austrian climate researchers, including workshops, on the basis of which shared goals, research areas and process steps for a Science Plan were developed. From April to May 2016, a public commenting process was carried out, ensuring the broadest possible involvement of people interested in the subject.
The CCCA community was also kept up to date on the development of the Science Plan at regular intervals via the CCCA newsletter.
There was also coordination with the Austrian Assessment Report (APCC AAR14), which provided topics on the current state of research. To ensure quality, the present version of the Science Plan was accompanied by review editors during the final phase. This version was adopted in accordance with the CCCA statutes (§10) in March 2017 at the 9th CCCA General Assembly.