China, Climate, and the G8 Summit
June 6, 2007
It's that time of year, when the leaders of the G8 countries (U.S., U.K., Japan, Italy, Russia, Germany, and France) come together to solve the world's problems in a matter of days. Of course, this is easier said than done, and it seems that the same issues keep popping up year after year:
Ending poverty, curing deadly diseases, preventing terrorism, improving education, and of course the environment and climate change.
This year, in addition to the usual suspects, climate change has made a big splash at the summit, but the eight member countries, as well as other countries present, like China, India, Brazil, and South Africa, are far from reaching consensus.
Last week the
White House issued a plan addressing climate change, many other members of the G8 voiced concerns that the U.S. policy wasn't comprehensive enough, and could undermine UN efforts for a unified global approach. Bush didn't agree to limits on greenhouse emissions, but instead advocates discussing limits on greenhouse gases with countries like India and China.
Given that this year China will probably surpass the U.S. as the country emitting the most greenhouse gases, this isn't a bad strategy. Why restrict the U.S.'s greenhouse emissions if India and China aren't doing the same?
On the other hand, many in India and China don't think imposing mandatory limits is fair, either. This week China released its own
global warming agenda without mentioning specific limits on emissions.
According to
Shiv Sankar Menon, India's Foreign Secretary, "
The fact is, historical responsibilities, even in terms of present emission levels - it's quite clear who's responsible for this. Once our per capita emission levels reach the same as those of the industrialised countries, we'll be very happy to do our share too."
He makes a point- why should India and other developing countries have to pay for the sins of the industrialized world? But at the same time, because the per capita use of greenhouse gases in these countries is lower than many of their Western counterparts, there is a tremendous opportunity for environmental innovation.
If Beijing's adding 1,000 new cars to its roads every day, why can't these cars be hybrids? Even beyond that, why not use alternative fuels that are environmentally friendly, or different vehicles altogether.
Granted, finding a concrete solution to the complex problem of climate change is easier said than done, and "innovation" and "finding alternatives" seem to be convenient ways of admitting that we don't have the answers right now.
Given the dynamics in today's world, however, the G8 won't be able to find a concrete answer to these and other complex problems by itself. It needs a global solution.
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