This course is designed for master and PhD students, researchers, engineers, scientists, practitioners, and decision makers (from Africa, MENA region and elsewhere) interested in improving their skills in the field of climate change, projections, and services.

1.     Observed and projected climate changes and impacts at the global scale and in Africa and MENA region

This course will give an overview of the recent main findings and conclusions on the ongoing and future climate changes and the related impacts depending on emission scenarios. It is intended to allow the learner to describe the observed and projected climate changes and impacts at the global scale and in Africa including extreme events.

2.       Climate models

Through this course the learners will improve their knowledge on the climate models principles, functioning and types (including GCMs and RCMs) as well as their role and limitations. They will also have the opportunity for improving their knowledge about climate model outputs and how they may be processed depending on the intended use.

3.       Downscaling and bias correction methods

The learners will improve their skill regarding dynamical and statistical downscaling in terms of role, main methods, added value and limitations. They will also learn about principles and types of model bias correction methods and discuss their usefulness and limitations. The learners will also get familiar with some downscaling and bias correction tools.

4.       Emission scenarios

This course will allow the learners to improve their knowledge about GHG emissions including their main sources and repartition across regions/subregions. They will learn about the IPCC SSP emissions and concentrations scenarios, emission pathways compatible with 1.5°C and 2°C targets as well as the role of aerosols and air pollution. The learners will have the opportunity for discussing mitigation needs and potential in the context of sustainable development.

5.     Information for impacts and vulnerability assessments, and adaptation

This course is intended to make the learners more familiar with the main required climate data types for assessing climate change impacts, vulnerability, and adaptation. Through practical exercises, they will have the opportunity of a guided tour of different observed and modeled climate data platforms, download and process/analyze some of their content.  They will also learn about some existing tools for climate model data processing and analysis. The Learners will be able to improve their knowledge and analytical skills related to climate data and services.

6.     Climate projections and use

This course will allow learners to improve their understanding and use of climate projections for climate change assessments at different scales (regional, national, and local). They will be able to understand and discuss the different sources of climate change uncertainties. Case studies and practical exercises will give them the opportunity to assess and deal with some types of uncertainty sources (i.e., modeling, scenarios).

7.       Extreme events attribution and projection

In this course the learners will understand the role and principle of attribution and learn about the methods used for identifying the causes of observed climate changes at global and regional scales. They will also improve their skills related to the attribution and future projections of extreme events through case studies and results analysis.

8.       Case studies and sector related assessments

In this course several case studies will be presented to the learners who will have the opportunity to understand and discuss the methods applied and the results. The focus will be given to climate studies related to water, energy, agriculture, and cities. In the light of the presented case studies, the learners will also be able to discuss their current or expected works and collect advice/ideas when possible and appropriate.