The Durban climate change negotiations are about three gaps. The
first is scientific and has to do with the amount of Greenhouse
gases we are pumping into the atmosphere, and the levels we need
to reduce to in order to prevent irreversible changes to the
climate system. The second is political and affects the course
of the negotiations. The third is the gap between public
perception of climate change and the reality of the change that
has already begun. All of these gaps are interrelated. In 2009
countries made pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in
order to keep global average temperature from increases below 2
degrees Celsius. Last week the United Nations Environment
Programme issued “The Emissions Gap Report: Are the Copenhagen
Accord Pledges Sufficient to Limit Global Warming to 2oC or
1.5oC?” Following the conclusion of the 15th Conference of the
Parties (COP 15) in Copenhagen, 42 industrialized countries
submitted “economy-wide” emissions targets for 2020. Another 43
developing countries also sub