The Refinishing Touch Blog

We couldn't blog this week without mentioning the G20 Summit that is happening across the Atlantic. It takes place in London where there has been plenty of unrest, and we're glad to observe it from a distance.

The G20 summit has a primary objective as a forum to cover the economic crisis but with so many global figureheads in one place at one time, there are calls that they shouldn't miss an opportunity to discuss climate change. These calls were quelled earlier in the week when G20 advisers reminded environmentalists that the climate change event of the year is in December, when the UN will hope to reach a global deal to replace the Kyoto agreement.

Granted, the G20 is not the place to discuss green rules for developed countries, but despite the scale of the economic crisis leaders should at least acknowledge a link between the economy, the environment, and how announcements such as Obama's stimulus plan and the myriad of various green initiatives within it all connect.

Meanwhile some environmentalists are challenging the logic of having a global summit once every few years - and the resulting lack of speed in agreeing, let alone implementing any agreements, needs to be dramatically changed. Even at a faster pace we would struggle in the race to keep up with the speed of fossil fuels being burnt, ice cap melting and deforestation. And December is a long way away....

Labels: Climate Change, G20 Summit, green efforts