WWF-Australia - for a living planet

Mid-Summit Update

12 Dec 2007

Bali, Indonesia - The first week of talks at the UN Climate Change Conference in Bali showed satisfactory progress, says WWF.

Despite the heat and humidity in Bali, the overall atmosphere at the negotiations is constructive and agreeable. All substantial issues on the agenda are on the table, from mitigation to adaptation and deforestation to technology, and are being approached with a relatively open mind, especially by a range of developing countries.

Many developing countries, united in the G77 plus China, have come to Bali with considerable ambition and are showing flexibility, says Hans Verolme, Director of WWF's Global Climate Change Programme. "A group of major emerging economies including China, South Africa, and Brazil showed clarity of vision this week and made concrete proposals to tackle technology transfer by proposing a platform for public-private partnerships for technology cooperation."

The preparedness to engage has, however, not been matched by all G77 countries; Saudi Arabia and Malaysia especially disappointed with old-fashioned unconstructive contributions.

Rich countries generally added to the positive atmosphere. The EU as expected offered to do its fair share and cut emissions by up to 30 percent by 2020. US interventions were restrained but added little to the debate.

The Canadian government notably refused to recognize the obligations of industrialized countries, inexplicably implying that developing countries hold equal responsibility. Japan was forced to clarify its position about its commitment to further cuts in carbon pollution under the second phase of the Kyoto Protocol.

Industrialized countries now need to engage with the positive developing countries to enhance the trust that has been built up in the past days. They need to confirm the target range of reducing emissions from industrialised countries by 25 to 40 percent by 2020. They need to recognize the need of developing countries for technology transfer and financing of new, cleaner technologies - and they need to put up the cash to support their good intentions

Also, the Adaptation Fund needs to be settled to the benefit of the Least Developed Countries, those who already now suffer most from the damaging impacts of climate change.

The Indonesia Presidency of the conference faces a challenge, to transform the positive atmosphere into real ambition. This ambition must be strong enough to drive negotiations in the second week.

"We may be getting closer to a decision to Bali Mandate, but we are still far removed from a political deal towards deep cuts in carbon emissions," adds Verolme. "We still need to agree the goal for this negotiation that is coherent with what the IPCC tells us needs to be done to avoid dangerous climate change."

Notes: Briefing – WWF’s Beginners Guide to the UN Climate Talks. Download from http://www.panda.org/climate.

Background:

In 1992, most countries joined the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to fight global warming and to adapt to the inevitable temperature increases. Fifteen years later Indonesia will host the third Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (MOP3) in conjunction with the 13th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP13) in Bali from 3 to 14 December. The Bali conference will be the culmination of a momentous twelve months in the international climate debate. Over the past year, overwhelming scientific evidence of global warming, set out in the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), put the reality of human-induced global warming beyond any reasonable doubt.

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