The Wellspring

Symbolising the priority placed on fighting global warming, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon recently appointed three special envoys on climate change. The envoys – former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland (famous for propagating the commonly-held concept and definition for ’sustainable development’), former South Korean Foreign Minister Han Seung soo (Ban’s former boss!) and former Chilean President Ricardo Lagos – will work with Ban and political leaders around the world on fostering new climate change negotiations.

For more information, see the UN News Centre’s release at http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=22410&Cr=climate&Cr1=change.

(Incidentally, the UN-Truth blog has an interesting (but somewhat rambling) article on the proliferation of UN Special Envoys: see http://www.un-truth.com/?p=203.)

In spectacular timing, the next day, the Australian Minister for the Environment and Water Resources called for the Kyoto Treaty to be scrapped, arguing the agreement belongs in the “pages of climate history”. The Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP said that with no limits set for developing countries, a lack of deforestation provisions and no chance the U.S. will ratify it, the world should focus on creating a new document. Critics countered that the government is merely trying to gloss over Australia’s rising energy and transport emissions. Ruh roh!

For further information, see the Reuters article at http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SYD71858.htm.