Wednesday, January 18, 2006

The Asia Pacific Climate Summit: Big business as usual

Seeing as I live in Sydney and write about environmental economics, you could be forgiven for asking why I haven’t written anything about last week’s Asia Pacific Climate Summit in Sydney. That's the meeting of the Kyoto naysayers – Australia, the US, China, Japan, India and South Korea.

Well, the truth is that nothing much happened. Really.

But here are some quotes to give you a flavour of the meeting, made in response to journalists' questions about whether we should really just leave climate change solutions up to the private sector:

From US Energy Secretary, Samuel Bodman:

The people who run the private sector, who run these companies, also have children and grandchildren, and they too live and breathe in the world and would like [climate change] dealt with effectively.
From Australia's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer:

The corporate world increasingly realises it has to be responsible. We are not trying to run some kind of police state. We don't support targets. We don't support that system.
So, business as usual then?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Look away, nothing to see there. It looks like we'll have to ignore them and just get on with environmental business ourselves.

Wonderful to find your blog David. I look forward to reading more.

Amy Marpman said...

I LOVE the quotes! I wouldn't expect anything less from the US Energy Secretary - good thing he's got Downer to keep him company in their rogue fight to increase the effects of global warming. What is the point of these meetings anyway? Things get negotiated to a point of inaction and that leaves us where exactly?

I'm also glad to find your blog - can't wait to read more!

Kieran said...

I'd be suprised if the likes of Bodman and Downer said anything else. The Asia Pacific Climate Summit was a diversion, a Greenwash, a pathetic attempt at some domestic cred whilst continuing to ignore environmental measures with teeth.

Calvin Jones said...

Great post David, for more on climate change you may like to check out my blog on the subject.

http://climatechangeaction.blogspot.com