Over the weekend, the world (and the planet) scored a win as the U.S. delegates to the climate change summit in Bali made an abrupt turn, accepting the road map to a post-Kyoto pact.
After two weeks of discussions, the majority of the delegates came up with a plan of action that set a 2009 deadline for a new treaty and a promise of "deep cuts" in greenhouse-gas emissions. But the U.S. representatives protested, wringing their hands over whether the process was moving too quickly and might preempt future negotiations (since the past 20 years hasn't been enough time). Paula Dobriansky, undersecretary of state for democracy and global affairs and head of the U.S. delegation, first announced to the summit they were rejecting the plan, which was met with a chorus of boos. After plenty of chastising from other delegates, who asked the U.S. to "get out of the way," Dobriansky got back up several minutes later and announced that the U.S. would come on board.
It's progress, though not as much as many hoped would come from the summit. Delegates from the European Union had been pushing for industrialized countries to commit to cutting greenhouse-gas emissions between 25 to 40 percent by 2020, but in the version agreed upon, the final text agrees to "deep cuts" rather than specific targets. This is at least in part due to the U.S. delegation, which has been the most outspoken critic of targets.
Even without targets, the White House says they have "serious concerns" about the Bali plan, which is really why our delegation's change of tune on Saturday is great news. The Bush administration's own minions, sent there to push their agenda, were forced to come around upon realizing that the entire world is against them. Sure, hashing out a new treaty over the next two years will be an arduous task, but the rest of the world proved this weekend that they aren't going to let the U.S. stand in the way any longer.
--Kate Sheppard
