COP11: November 28-December 9th

Nearly 10,000 representatives from around the world  gathered in Montreal to discuss expansion and deepening of the committments started under the Kyoto Protocol, which came into force earlier in 2005.

The meeting in Montreal has generated new momentum in the fight to curb
global warming emissions. The Bush Administration clearly came here
determined to prevent the rest of the world from extending and deepening
their commitments under Kyoto, but despite their opposition, industrialized nations agreed to launch a new round of negotiations for deeper cuts of heat-trapping pollution responsible for global warming. 

While the US Government remains opposed to future committments, the world took notice of the growing number of U.S. cities, states, and businesses who are supportive for meaningful action to reduce global warming pollution, giving them much needed support to push forward for deeper cuts involving a broader set of countries than negotiated under the Kyoto Protocol.

But we need more than talk, as human communities and ecosystems in the U.S. and around the world are already suffering from the impacts of climate change.  Scientists agree that these impacts will become catastrophic unless we make deep cuts in greenhouse gases emissions from the burning of oil, coal and gas – and make them soon.

The Kyoto Protocol is a small, but important, first step towards a just and sustainable global regime to stop climate disruption. But if the Kyoto Protocol, whose modest  reduction commitments end in 2012, is not soon followed by more significant steps to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, then we will not be able to avoid the most devastating impacts of global warming, putting at risk our water supplies and food production, an increases in the severity of droughts, floods and storms.