Now, more than ever, the world needs climate scientists. Climate expertise is particularly needed in countries most vulnerable to the negative impacts of climate change. Although there is a large amount of excellent climate science training available around the world, access to this training is uncoordinated and dependent on factors other than the skill or need of those who need to access it. Barriers to access to training are primarily geographical and financial.

Throughout the COVID-19 global pandemic, the quality and quantity of training that has been provided using virtual tools has been astonishing. The future for global climate science training looks bright, with these same tools making it possible for the best and brightest early career researchers to benefit from training that meets their needs delivered from institutions around the world. The new WCRP Academy lighthouse activity seeks to use this moment of transformation to deliver a step-change in our ability to connect learners and educators around the world. The ambition of the Academy is to be the first global marketplace for climate science training, helping researchers to learn about and access training and training institutions to build sustainable courses that can be delivered in-person, blended or virtually.

This session will be part of our first global climate science training stock-take. The stock-take will establish what training is needed and where and how that training might be delivered. We plan an innovative session that mixes invited presentations from:

• leading organisations already delivering climate science training,
• online and blended learning pioneers, and
• early career researchers from around the world,

with a town-hall style discussion that allows AGU members and conference attendees to give their views and feedback on development of the WCRP Academy to date and the state of climate science training. Moderators will ensure that the discussion reveals the areas where there is a deficit of training and the barriers to greater training uptake. Virtual participation from around the world will be vital to furthering our understanding of the training task at hand and also serve to demonstrate what is possible in the new post-COVID world.

The WCRP Academy in general and this special session aligns very strongly with AGU strategic goals of Global Collaboration and Science Education. Our aim to connect early career researchers with the best climate science educators regardless of geography or financial support exemplifies the open and diverse scientific culture that AGU seeks to promote.

• WCRP: World Climate Research Programme -