Major Emitters Fumble - missed opportunity, waste of time

Washington , United States — The first meeting of the Major Economies Forum (MEF) wrapped up today in Washington, DC, with Greenpeace labeling it as a waste of time.

"Two more days wasted: 222 left to go," said Greenpeace US deputy campaign Director Carroll Muffett.

The MEF brought together the 17 most polluting nations on the planet-responsible for the vast majority of all global greenhouse gas emissions-to discuss the future of climate policy and, with it, the future of billions of people threatened by global warming. 

While not a formal part of the UN climate negotiations that must culminate in a new global treaty in Copenhagen this December, the MEF process has been touted by the Obama administration as a means to accelerate and facilitate that process.

"Unfortunately, while the last two days brought soaring and inspiring rhetoric-reflecting the profound sea change in U.S. climate policy-it brought little in the way of real progress.  

 "US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton launched the meeting by recognising the now inescapable truth that climate change poses a ‘clear and present danger to our world' and the equally inevitable fact that today's leaders will be judged by future generations on how they respond," said Muffett.

Yet Clinton's call for the MEF to generate "concrete initiatives" that leaders can consider at the Group of 8 meeting in Italy in July went largely unheeded-including by the U.S. itself. 

Despite its commitment to show leadership, the United States has yet to commit to the dramatic short-term emissions reductions that will make a deal in Copenhagen possible, proposing instead that agreements focus on long-term emissions reduction commitments that are insufficient to avert catastrophic climate change.

"This meeting should have been used to set the stage for a strong and legally binding agreement in Copenhagen, by moving industrialised nations closer to a declaration of ambitious short-term emissions reduction commitments and moving the world beyond the North-South rhetoric that has stalled negotiations to date," said Muffett.

"Unfortunately, the meeting saw no real progress towards greener development pathways for developing countries and no new financial and technical support from developed countries to make that development possible," he said.

Whether even the carbon emissions of delegates' flights to the meetings were "offset" by the negligible progress made is doubtful. Our leaders must ensure that the next round of MEF meetings moves us closer to a solution at Copenhagen. The world can't afford any more wasted time."