← Climate preparedness record

Evidence standard

How evidence is checked

The climate preparedness record examines public preparation and delivery after an authoritative climate forecast. Weather warnings remain the responsibility of the issuing authorities, and any claim of climate attribution requires separate evidence. This standard explains which sources qualify, how strongly they support a claim and how the public record is corrected.

Assessment structure

The six questions behind every assessment

  1. Stage 1
    Signal

    What authoritative information was issued, when, for which place and with what confidence?

  2. Stage 2
    Trigger

    What official review, activation or early action followed the forecast?

  3. Stage 3
    Authority

    Which law, mandate, office or public function assigns responsibility?

  4. Stage 4
    Commitment

    Was a decision, appropriation, procurement or operational instruction issued?

  5. Stage 5
    Execution

    What action can be verified through a dated source or field record?

  6. Stage 6
    Outcome

    What occurred, who benefited or suffered loss, and what should change before the next event?

Selection of evidence

What qualifies for the public record

Could this change the assessment?

Evidence is included when it could alter the assessment of the forecast, the responsible authority, a public commitment, implementation or outcome.

Can readers verify the source?

A reader must be able to identify the issuer, publication or event date, geographical scope and original public source.

Does this concern a public decision?

The evidence must relate to an identifiable decision or period of action. General commentary is insufficient.

Does the wording match the evidence?

The assessment must not claim more than the source supports. Forecast, exposure, impact, causation and institutional failure are separate claims.

Priority is given to legislation and official decisions, followed by forecasts and datasets from the issuing institution, peer-reviewed research, credible institutional reports, reputable journalism and attributable field evidence.

Evidence states

What each evidence status means

Submitted
A source has been received and awaits editorial assessment.
Under review
The source, date, scope, authorship and relevance are being checked.
Verified
The cited public source supports the specific statement made.
Mapped
The relevant law, institution or public function has been identified. This status makes no claim about implementation.
Editorial interpretation
The conclusion is drawn from cited sources and is identified as analysis rather than reported fact.
Disputed
A consequential disagreement or contradictory source is published alongside the assessment.
Superseded
Later evidence has replaced an earlier conclusion, which remains available in the revision history.
Evidence outstanding
An important question remains unresolved because an adequate dated public source has not been located.
Not assessable at this stage
The relevant decision or outcome period has not occurred.

Corrections and right of reply

How corrections are handled

01

Receive

The submission identifies the statement concerned, the supporting public source and the correction or reply sought.

02

Assess

Authorship, date, scope, accuracy and relevance are checked against the published assessment.

03

Decide

Supported evidence is incorporated, a substantive disagreement is recorded, or no public change is made.

04

Publish

A correction that changes the assessment receives a dated revision, while the previous version remains available.

Submit evidence, a correction or right of reply →

Data and privacy

Public sources and personal information

Public sources

Submissions should link to material intended for public scrutiny. Classified, confidential, medical and personally sensitive information is excluded.

Personal details

Name, organisation and contact email are optional. When supplied, they are used for verification and remain private.

Permanent public record

Each assessment has a permanent identifier, webpage, citation, revision history and downloadable data.

Limits of the assessment

Forecasts, observations, exposure, impact and institutional performance are treated as distinct claims requiring appropriate evidence.