Climate Change: Countdown to Copenhagen

After a brief introduction to the science of climate change and 
the social and economic impact of its consequences on a developing country 
like India, the talk will look at the evolving international politics of 
climate change since 1992 when the UN Framework Convention on Climate 
Change came into being. The most important element of this multilateral 
framework has been the Kyoto Protocol that came into force in 2005, an 
interim measure to quantitatively limit carbon and other greenhouse gas 
emissions into the atmosphere, the main anthropogenic cause of climate 
change, whose first commitment period comes to an end in 2012. In December 
2009,  the 192 signatories to the Convention will meet at Copenhagen for 
the 15th Conference of the Parties to arrive at an agreement for the 
second commitment period beyond 2012. The current state of play of the 
negotiations, the current face off between the developed and developing 
countries, the shifting policy stance of India and the prospects at 
Copenhagen will be discussed.