David Steven is a writer and policy consultant whose work includes a pamphlet on the future of unionism in Northern Ireland (published by Slugger O’Toole) and reports for Daily Summit, at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg.

Recent articles

The climate-change conference in Bali on 3-14 December 2007 ended in agreement, acclaim - and argument about the details. openDemocracy writers and environmental specialists offer a first draft of history on the Bali deal.

Europe's Bali Leadership The success of a subtle strategy. AWGmented unilateral commitments. The Deal itself.
 

The European Union had the last word at Bali and that was probably fitting. They made many concessions and looked at times as if they could be bossed by both the Americans and the large developing countries.

But, all in all, Europe had a good conference. They have become climate change's playmakers, pursuing a strategy that has surprising subtlety.

With Bali's biggest decision now made, the media pack has rushed off to file stories, source reaction, or get drunk on the beach. But the action here in plenary is not quite done.

In a meeting under the ‘Kyoto track', countries have just signed up to the kind of ambitious goals that were washed out of the main Bali declaration.

This decision affects all countries that have ratified Kyoto (most of the world other than the USA).  This includes Australia. For the first time, it expressed "strong support" for a goal of reducing rich country emissions by 25-40% by 2020, from a 1990 baseline.

A rolling post, updating the tortuous path towards a Bali agreement. Update 1: a tentative agreement that will be debated further, 8am tomorrow morning. Update 2 (the next morning): the agreement begins to unwind. Update 3: misprint in the text! Update 4: farce. Update 5: Shameful scenes - Yvo de Boer in tears. Update 6: Just when it seemed impossible, Bali roadmap agreed. Update 7: De Boer returns.