The Institutionalisation of Science Advice on Climate Change: What role for The European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change?

The European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change is a recently established advisory body, aiming to provide the European Union with scientific knowledge, expertise and advice relating to climate change. With a plethora of both advisory and expert bodies on climate-related topics at the national, supranational, and international level already in existence, this paper starts with the puzzle of why is the ESABCC needed? It is widely acknowledged that the EU has built the most advanced climate policy framework among major world actors, underpinning its role as an international climate leader. Consequently, the recognition of the complexity of the climate crisis has led to the increasing complexity of the climate policy mix and climate policy integration (Oberthür & von Homeyer, 2022). In this context, a complex knowledge exchange architecture (Dupont et al. 2023) has emerged at the European level. Analysing the early establishment stage of the Board, this paper investigates the institutionalization of climate science in EU-level policymaking processes as part of wider (global) trend which sees a proliferation of (climate) science advice bodies. By drawing together the literature on EU climate governance, science advisory bodies, and the role of science advice in tackling climate change, coupled with empirical insights, the paper contributes to the filling the research gap on the relationship between science and policy in the EU’s climate governance. While it is too early to evaluate the influence of the ESABCC on EU climate policymaking, we engage with theories of neo-institutionalism, expertisation and knowledge utilisation, in order to make a first evaluation of its institutional design and functional objectives in the wider EU’s knowledge architecture around climate change.