Cancún climate summit: Rich accused of 'holding humanity hostage'

[cory777]

Source: Guardian

In the absence of Barack Obama, David Cameron and most developed country leaders, a group of Britain's least-welcome heads of state plans to grab centre-stage at next week's global climate summit and accuse wealthy countries of a collective lack of ambition.

At the 194-nation summit in Cancún, Mexico, Hugo Chávez, president of Venezuela, Rafael Correa, president of Ecuador, and Bolivia's Evo Morales, all of whom were accused by Gordon Brown of "holding the world to ransom" at last year's political debacle at Copenhagen, plan to charge the rich nations with imperilling the poorest people in the world.

They will be joined by the presidents of Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Colombia, Brazil and Guatemala.

The Latin American presidents want to bolster the cause of nearly 100 small island states, and other poor countries on the frontline of climate change, which say that proposals to hold the global temperature rise to 2C threaten their existence.

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/nov/26/cancun-climate-summit-humantiy-hostage

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[guardian]

1. The only thing that will happen at COP16

is that the delegates will get tanned and drink a lot of mango daiquiris. I predict it will be a failure like COP15.

[pampango]

2. Climate aid pledges at $30 billion goal

Pledges by rich countries to provide developing nations with "fast-start" funds to fight climate change have reached a goal of $30 billion for 2010-12, but some of it is not "new and additional" as promised.

Figures has cautioned developing nations that rich nations' 2010 budgets were largely set before the Copenhagen summit, making it hard for all aid to be new and additional this year.

NATIONAL:

UNITED STATES - $3 billion. Washington contributed $1.3 billion for 2010 and President Barack Obama is seeking $1.7 billion for 2011. The United States is a leading donor in a $3.5 billion plan to protect forests from 2010-12 also funded by Australia, France, Japan, Norway and Britain.

JAPAN - $15 billion. Japan said in Copenhagen it would offer $15 billion in the three years to end-2012, including $11 billion in public money. The total amount includes about 1 trillion yen ($12.19 billion) left over from the "Cool Earth Partnership" initiative under the previous Liberal Democratic Party-led government running from 2008-2012.

CANADA - $396 million. Canada has committed C$400 million as fast-start funds for the 2010-11 fiscal year, above those considered for climate change programs before Copenhagen. Future contributions have not been decided.

AUSTRALIA - $551 million. In June, promised 559 million Australian dollars ($550.7 million) to the 2010-12 funds.

EUROPEAN UNION - $10.06 billion. A draft EU report says governments are on track to meet a goal of 7.2 billion euros ($10.06 billion) in 2010-12 and have fulfilled a pledge to provide 2.2 billion euros of the total in 2010.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6AF24U20101116