Abstract
This paper is an interpretation of a climate change article written by John Vidal in The Guardian newspaper. The first section will cover the summary of the article and the second section will include the analysis. The final section of this paper will cover the reasoning of this article on the basis of its relation with the issue of climate change.
Climate Change Article
Introduction
The article is based on the reneging of pledges made by the rich countries like Japan, Australia and Canada over cutting their carbon emissions. These countries have failed in their pledges by avoiding the cuts they needed to make and this failure has led to Typhoon Haiyan in Philippines.
Summary
With Typhoon Haiyan hitting the shores of Philippines fears over global warming have been revisited once more in this decade. More than 3,600 people perished in Typhoon Haiyan and the blame has been placed on rich countries who backtracked on their promises to reduce their carbon emissions. The poorest countries of world have started their intensified discussions to bring this issue to the core in the international summit to be held in coming months. Philippines’s lead negotiator Yeb Sano spoke about the breakdown of relations currently overshadowing the talks due for paving way for new deal in the 2015 aiming to bring the global emissions down.
With governments of Japan, Australia and Canada deciding to downgrade their current efforts over the issue of climate change have created a feeling of panic between which get most affected by global warming, as they believe other richer countries will soon follow their suit. Lately, Japan announced that they will do a u-turn on their pledge of reducing carbon emission from 25% to 3.8% by the year 2020, on the grounds of their shutting down of nuclear reactors post 2011 tsunami and earthquake. Australia, have decided not to send their minister for the talks to be held this weekend, have signaled that they will weaken their targets and have repealed their domestic law on carbon emission after conservative government was elected in latest elections. Canada has pulled their name from Kyoto Protocol accord, where major economies committed to reduce their emissions of CO2 below its 1990 levels.
With such actions from the developed countries, developing economies are asking for a compensation scheme to be arranged for any future natural disaster like typhoon Haiyan, resulting from global warming. These countries are also looking for a guarantee of $100 billion per year from developed countries by 2020 which would help them to adapt these severe acts of nature. At present, developing countries have done more by reducing their emissions in comparison to the richer countries and they want the rich countries to follow their suit as what is happening to them today will happen to the well developed countries too.
Analysis
Conclusion
It is necessary for the developed countries to reduce their carbon emissions as it is not the responsibility of developing countries to care for the environment and global warming. Leaders of richer countries must act urgently because climate change is likely to make such extreme weather events more common in the future; putting millions more lives at risk.
References
Vidal, J. (17/11/2013). "Climate change pledges: rich nations face fury over moves to renege". Retrieved from. http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/nov/16/climate-change-pledges-rich-nations
