Obama's vision

Though his plate is more than full with the economic crisis, much of the world is also placing its hopes on President-elect Barack Obama taking strong action on climate change.

Yvo de Boer, executive director of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, says he hopes the United States will take a more active role in fighting global warming once Barack Obama becomes president.

"With President-elect Obama, my hope is that the US can take on a leadership role and help to move the negotiations forward," he says.

But even under an Obama administration, the US is not likely to join the Kyoto Protocol, he says.

The US rejected the Kyoto accord, arguing it would harm American business and made no comparable demands on emerging economies.

Emissions of greenhouse gases in the US have risen about 14 percent since 1990 levels, he says, whereas they would have had to decline by 6 percent if the nation was part of Kyoto.

"I don't see how in four year's time the US can reduce emissions by 20 percent. That's not technically possible," he tells China Business Weekly.

China, India and other large developing countries have signed the accord but refused to accept a binding agreement that they say would limit their development and their ability to ease poverty at home.

Even under an Obama administration, the US is not likely to join the Kyoto Protocol, said Yvo de Boer.

And US-ambassador and Special Envoy to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Harlan Watson told China Business Weekly, when he attended a UN-sponsored climate change conference in Beijing on November 7, " We don't see any changes in our international stance on climate change after the election."

He said Obama made climate change one of his priorities during his presidential campaign, and would continue to do so after he takes office.

Obama has said he wants to make the US a leader on climate change and re-engage with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the parent treaty of the Kyoto Accord.

He has put a strong focus on renewable energy sources, energy efficiency and the use of a "cap-and-trade" system. Obama also emphasizes his commitment to investing in clean technology, saying that new technology from the US can help countries like China to fight climate change.

Besides, Watson strongly expects that Obama would continue the Sino-US cooperation on climate change, especially clean technologies and carbon storage technology.

Only one week after the conference in Beijing, Jason Grumet, the Obama campaign's lead energy and environment adviser, said in a conference on carbon trading: "The president-elect will move quickly on climate change," adding Obama will borrow from initiatives in place in Europe and some US states to control heat-trapping emissions.

(China Daily 11/17/2008 page4)