The MJO is the dominant mode of intraseasonal climate variability in the tropical troposphere with derivative effects on weather and intraseasonal climate outside of the tropics. Recent work has revealed a wide variety of connections between tropical convection and the middle atmosphere. In the planned session, contributions would be solicited relating to (a) stratospheric influences on deep tropical convection and the MJO; (b) stratospheric influences on the extratropical troposphere, either via the MJO or via direct downward propagation of circulation anomalies in the polar stratosphere; (c) the relative importance of the stratospheric influence on tropical convection and extratropical circulation as compared to that of variability originating in the troposphere–ocean system (e.g., ENSO variability); and (d) stratospheric influences on the MJO and its extratropical consequences.