Tokyo, March 25:

Climate scientists and Government representatives began discussions in the Japanese city of Yokohama on Tuesday to draw up the second part of a key assessment of the global climate.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) will finalise a its report on the impacts of climate change on human and natural systems, and possible methods of adaptation during the five-day conference.

“Climate challenge is a long term challenge, but it requires urgent action,” warned Achim Steiner, the head of the UN Environment Programme, in a video message at the opening of the meeeting.

The report is “the culmination of four years’ work by hundreds of experts,” the IPCC said. The panel’s Summary for Policymakers is due to be released on March 31.