A new ad hoc Committee of the Academies will conduct an independent review of the Second State of the Carbon Cycle (SOCCR-2) report, which will be available in early to mid-2017. The committee will conduct this review concurrent with the public review period for the SOCCR-2 Report and produce a report.

The review will provide an overall critique of the draft special report and address the following questions:

• Are the goals, objectives and intended audience of the product clearly described in the document? Does the report meet its stated goals?
• Does the report accurately reflect the scientific literature? Are there any critical content areas missing from the report?
• Are the findings documented in a consistent, transparent and credible way?
• Are the report’s key messages and graphics clear and appropriate? Specifically, do they reflect supporting evidence, include an assessment of likelihood, and communicate effectively?
• Are the research needs identified in the report appropriate?
• Are the data and analyses handled in a competent manner? Are statistical methods applied appropriately?
• Are the document's presentation, level of technicality, and organization effective?
• What other significant improvements, if any, might be made in the document?