Scientist-driven and independent – IPESG is driven by a global community of scholars and operates as an academic assessment initiative. Its scope, methodology and findings are defined and developed by scientists, ensuring intellectual independence and academic rigour.

Focus on social science research – IPESG provides a systematic synthesis of social science research on earth system governance, focusing on the political, institutional and legal dimensions of sustainability transformations.

Grounded in systematic literature assessments – IPESG synthesizes existing social science research rather than conducting new empirical studies. Its reports follow rigorous protocols for literature identification, screening and analysis.

Policy relevant – IPESG assessments focus on questions of high policy relevance. Findings are based on systematic assessment of the academic literature and are presented in an analytical, non-prescriptive manner.

Distinct assessment domains – IPESG organizes its work around specific, policy-relevant research questions rather than attempting to assess the entire field at once. Assessment domains are carefully scoped to strike a balance between emerging, cutting-edge topics and a sufficiently robust body of literature to allow for systematic assessment.

Global and diverse – IPESG draws on expertise from across regions, social science disciplines and methodological traditions. It builds on the rich, globally diverse and plural scholarly community of the Earth System Governance Research Alliance.