Climate / Disaster Management

Durban delivers unexpected breakthrough

A marathon United Nations climate conference in Durban on Sunday approved a road map toward an accord which, for the first time, will bring all major emitters of greenhouse gases under a single legal roof – signalling unexpected success for the South African-led summit. If approved as scheduled in 2015, the pact will be operational from 2020 and become the prime weapon in the fight against climate change.

Read more: COP 17

Compromise tough to find in Durban

Breaking stalemates and deadlocks was at the heart of the challenge facing delegates at the COP17 climate summit in Durban as it moved into its final week, but hopefully South Africa won’t fail to capitalise on the green fever that has gripped the world. At the same time the Kyoto protocol seems doomed in the wake of an apparent widening gap between mature and emerging economies.

Read more: Climate watch

A compromise might be possible in Durban

A compromise is mooted at the COP17 conference on climate change, which started in Durban yesterday, as pessimists predict that the earliest a new global deal on reducing carbon emissions is likely to come into force is 2020 – eight years after the Kyoto Protocol comes to an end. According to some reports, one of the proposals, as set by the European Union, would see COP17 parties agreeing to a road map that would provide mandates for different countries up to 2015.

Read more: Climate watch

Will Kyoto survive the Durban heat?

Will we see the death of the Kyoto Protocol at the COP17 climate change conference in Durban starting next week or not? That is probably the most important question hanging over the Durban talks. Negotiators will seek to avert the death of the Kyoto protocol, an international climate agreement drawn up in the 1990s to cut greenhouse emissions.

Read more: Climate watch

Counting the cost of Prince Charles’ advice

Britain’s Prince Charles urged international organisations and summits "to bring together the narratives of climate change, sustainable development and economic stability -- surely the very bedrocks of national security.” He told an audience at Cape Town University that he was heartened by the university’s decision to appoint a pro vice chancellor for climate change – an idea he hoped would catch on elsewhere.

Read more: Climate watch