“CANCUN CAN” – RESOLUTE OPTIMISM

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) summit on climate change commenced as scheduled at Cancun, Mexico, with hopes, cautions, optimism and also pessimism. Mexico, which was devastated by prolonged droughts and a chain of hurricanes hosting the Summit this year is quite appropriate as it has already learned and experienced bitter lessons from the natural calamities. Felip Calderon, Mexican President formally inaugurated the summit on 30th Monday of November 2010, which is about to last for ten days. Calderon in his opening speech called upon the representatives of about 200 countries and hundreds of delegates to set aside their differences and evolve a solution acceptable to all nations. In the course of his speech he reminded that economic growth and environment protection could go hand-in-hand for sustainable development thus enabling growth and eradication of poverty. The dark shadow of last year’s Global Climate Summit under UN auspices still hanging like a pall of gloom, the Summit at Cancun, Mexico is something prestigious for UN. Otherwise its very credibility is certain to arise as a question mark and at this juncture we still recall the face-saving formula arrived at CopenHagen and the concluding face-saving speech delivered by UN Secretary General Ban-Ki-Moon. The unfortunate result was an aftermath of debates, arguments and verbal duels among the developed, developing and least developed nations assembled there.
The main stumbling block appeared in the form of developed nations, their reluctance to reduce carbon-emissions to a satisfactory level simultaneously prevailing upon developing countries for binding committments was not to the taste of developing and least developed countries. Ultimately, a face-saving device arrived at and unashamedly termed it a ‘success at last’. To keep America in good humour there were four developing nations to play the role of Judas – India, China, Brazil and South Africa which invited the wrath of least-developed nations. Then and now it is absolutely certain that if the ongoing summit is to scent success in the end the developed nations should have to make a climb-down.
A few measures are supposed to be taken and they are
1. To evolve a green fund so as to help the needy nations by developed countries.
2. Transfer of innovative technology to such nations by the well-to-do nations.
3. Aforestation on a massive scale to offset the deforestation and forest degradation.
4. To continue with Kyoto Protocol by developed nations which is a cardinal factor to reduce the green house emissions and a target of reducing global warming by 2 cm, otherwise it would result in rising sea-levels which would ultimately threaten a string of island nations below sea-level like Maldives getting submerged.
It is reported that India being an emerging economy US would like India to act as a bridge between developed nations and developing nations in moving ahead with International Consultation and Analysis (ICA) in the role of a deal-maker. And for India agree to such a suggestion a climate fund and transfer of technology to the needy nations are warranted. It is learnt that in such an eventuality in the future India is poised to agree for a binding agreement open to international inspection as also other developing nations.
US has already committed a fund of US $1.7bn dollars for the purpose.
As Danish Minister for Climate Change Lykke Friis pointed deliberations aside actions are the need of the hour, the sooner, the better.
The efforts on a war-footing to contain global warming and vagaries of climate in the opinion of experts especially environmental activists would not in anyway affect the economic growth and on the contrary sustainable economic growth would be the welcome result.
As decades go by global warming continue to mount alarmingly – the rate of warming in the 80’s itself was a pointer in the direction and in the next decade, ie. 90’s it increased much more alarmingly and in the ensuing decade – 2000-2010 – it has risen to dangerous levels and if things go on like these, the end result could very well be imagined. The rich bio-diversity – countless bio-organisms - flora and fauna are already on the verge of extinction and imagine rivers getting inundated, converting the land into sea, due to melting glaciers and untimely climate changes, soon followed by massive droughts converting the land into massive deserts destroying crops, leaving the farmers high and dry people getting starved to death due to famines engulfing the countries as a whole. I wonder how many among us have seriously pondered over the implications.
Last year while CopenHagen Summit was going on the one side another congregation organised anti-climate summit organised by the stooges of certain corporate honchos whose myopic mindset - who have no tomorrows - only on piling up massive wealth and on the other side and I am sure such a ‘congregation’ must be in its full swing for a few peanuts doled out by their masters nearby. Even in the run up to the Cancun summit these stooges have stooped to such low levels by spreading slanderous remarks about the summit.
Be that as it may.
Let’s hope for something positive to emerge and let Cancun not evolve into another CopenHagen. In case such an eventuality is resulted not only United Nations we the present generation would have to share the blame.