diff --git a/CHANGELOG.rst b/CHANGELOG.rst
index b5930a36f..de439ac1b 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.rst
+++ b/CHANGELOG.rst
@@ -2,14 +2,29 @@
 Changelog
 =========
 
-v0.53.0
+v0.53.0 (unreleased)
 --------------------
-Contributors to this version: Adrien Lamarche (:user:`LamAdr`).
+Contributors to this version: Adrien Lamarche (:user:`LamAdr`), Trevor James Smith (:user:`Zeitsperre`).
 
 Bug fixes
 ^^^^^^^^^
 * Fixed a small inefficiency in ``_otc_adjust`` (:pull:`1890`).
 
+Breaking changes
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+* The ``xclim.testing`` module has been refactored to make use of `pooch` and many now-redundant functions have been removed: (:pull:`1889`)
+    * ``xclim.testing.utilities.open_dataset`` is now found under ``xclim.testing.helpers.open_dataset`` and uses a `pooch` instance to deliver locally-stored datasets. Its call signature has also changed.
+    * ``xclim.testing.utilities.get_file``, ``xclim.testing.utilities.get_local_testdata``, ``xclim.testing.utilities.list_datasets``, and ``xclim.testing.utilities.file_md5_checksum`` have been removed.
+        * ``xclim.testing.helpers.nimbus`` replaces much of this functionality. See the `xclim` documentation for more information.
+* The `Ouranosinc/xclim-testdata` repository has been restructured for better organization and to make better use of `pooch` and data registries for testing data fetching. (:pull:`1889`).
+* `platformdirs` is no longer a direct dependency of `xclim`, but `pooch` is required to use many of the new testing functions (installable via `pip install pooch` or `pip install 'xclim[dev]'`). (:pull:`1889`).
+
+Internal changes
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+* The testing data fetching mechanism has been completely rewritten to use `pooch` and file registries. (:pull:`1889`).
+* Many tests focused on evaluating the normal operation of remote file access tools under ``xclim.testing`` have been removed. (:pull:`1889`).
+* Setup and teardown functions that were found under ``tests/conftest.py`` have been optimized to reduce redundant calls when running ``pytest xclim``. Some obsolete `pytest` fixtures have also been removed.(:pull:`1889`).
+
 v0.52.0 (2024-08-08)
 --------------------
 Contributors to this version: David Huard (:user:`huard`), Trevor James Smith (:user:`Zeitsperre`), Hui-Min Wang (:user:`Hem-W`), Éric Dupuis (:user:`coxipi`), Sarah Gammon (:user:`SarahG-579462`), Pascal Bourgault (:user:`aulemahal`), Juliette Lavoie (:user:`juliettelavoie`), Adrien Lamarche (:user:`LamAdr`).