Poznan, December 2008

Why?

The reason for this meeting was to work out how we can globally tackle the impacts of climate change.

The meeting at Poznan, Poland, was seen as a fundamental stepping stone on the international political negotiations leading up to a new GLOBAL CLIMATE DEAL in Copenhagen 2009.

The core of these negotiations is about a new global agreement to reduce emissions much further and much more radically than under the current Kyoto Protocol.

We are Watching you... WWF stunt at climate talks in Poznan
We are Watching you... WWF stunt at climate talks in Poznan
© WWF/Slawek Jankowski

What happened in Poznan?

The disappointing lack of progress at UN climate talks in Poznan was a major missed opportunity towards reaching a new global climate treaty in Copenhagen in 2009.

The stalemate was largely the result of a collapse in European Union leadership and obstructionism by other industrialized countries taking the negotiations hostage.



Poznan UN climate conference logo

What?

The meeting in Poznan in December 2008 was one of the milestones in the global process on how to tackle Climate Change that was started by the  Kyoto Protocol in 1997.

It's aims were to:
  • Get countries to agree on a plan of action and programmes of work, leading up to and smoothing the way for the ultimate meeting in Copenhagen in December 2009.
  • Make progress on issues such as capacity-building for developing countries, reducing emissions from deforestation, technology transfer and adaptation.
  • Create a "shared vision" and strengthen global commitment to the process.
Read more at the official U.N. Climate Change conference page


To prevent a climate catastrophe that would dwarf the current finance crunch, Poznan must agree to peak and decline global emissions well before 2020.
Kathrin Gutmann, WWF Global Climate Initiative
climate change event
Cracking the "climate nut" at the U.N. Climate Conference at Poznan, Poland
© WWF / Sławek Jankowski

Key Issues

New political scene
The starting point for Poznan differed dramatically from previous meetings because:
  • A new US President with an ambitious climate agenda had been elected;
  • Several of the emerging economies are in the process of adopting unprecedented policies to cut domestic emissions, and
  • The hesitating European Union (EU) could have returned to a leadership position by passing a groundbreaking set of climate and energy laws in December.
Economic crisis
Rather than delaying action against climate change due to recession fears, Ministers should agree on strong measures to reduce emissions, increase energy efficiency, and thus boosting green jobs and industries.

“A low-carbon society and clean energy investments are part of the solution for both the climate crisis and the financial crisis,” says Kathrin Gutmann, Head of Policy at the WWF Global Climate Initiative.


Publications launched in Poznan



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