Taking Action Globally

Keep up with developments on how various nations are addressing climate change and especially the responses’ impact on the poor and vulnerable. You can follow the discussion by looking at how international bodies such as the G-8, World Trade Organization, or the IPCC address the issue of climate change.

The public policy challenge before the nations of the world is how to address global climate change in a cooperative way that acknowledges the different capacities and responsibilities of developed and developing nations.

Mitigation and adaptation are two different approaches to addressing the potential impacts of climate change. Adaptation means shifting behavior now to adjust to the near-term impacts of climate change. It will require efforts to help protect people, their environment, and local and national economies from the negative effects of climate change. Mitigation means cutting back on the emissions of harmful global warming pollutants and taking action to prevent further harm to the atmosphere.

Although at some point in the future most countries will need to adopt both mitigating and adaptive strategies to address climate change, the capacity of developed and developing countries to do so differs, as do their needs for such measures.

To learn more about the debate, check the IPCC web site (www.ipcc.ch). The IPCC was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).