All these developments will enable official statisticians to improve the availability and comparability of climaterelated data. Only harmonised definitions and standards make it possible to produce diverse statistical indicators and yet be assured that the data source confirms to a common framework. This has an obvious advantage in that it will allow the combination of variables from different sources.
Notwithstanding the need for common classifications, data sources also need to be mutually coherent. Currently-available sources, both from private and public sources, do not yet live up to this requirement. This is a significant concern for policymakers.