A much-anticipated global meeting of nearly 200 nations -- all seeking what has so far been elusive common ground on the issue of climate change -- began here on Monday with an impassioned airing of what leaders here called the political and moral imperatives at hand. "The clock has ticked down to zero," said the United Nations' climate chief, Yvo de Boer. "After two years of negotiation, the time has come to deliver." From now until Dec. 18, delegates will try to hammer out some of the most vexing details involved in the pursuit of a global climate accord.
"The clock has ticked down to zero," said the United Nations' climate chief, Yvo de Boer. "After two years of negotiation, the time has come to deliver."
From now until Dec. 18, delegates will try to hammer out some of the most vexing details involved in the pursuit of a global climate accord.
Dutchman Yvo de Boer has headed the UN's climate bureau since 2006, and the Copenhagen conference is the culmination of his efforts. Insiders say De Boer feels passionately about the issues, but getting a climate change agreement is an intellectual challenge first and foremost. When Yvo de Boer applied for the job of executive secretary of the UN's climate bureau, there was little chance he would get the job. His predecessor, Joke Waller-Hunter, who had unexpectedly died, was from the Netherlands too. It is very unusual for the UN to give a top job to the same country twice in a row, and anyway, it was a developing country's turn. But de Boer was simply the best candidate, even after an extra selection round was held. The climate bureau was created to support the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the official name for the treaty that came out of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. It in charge of collecting data on greenhouse gas emissions from all the countries that are party to the treaty. It is also in charge of organising climate conferences, such as the one that started in Copenhagen on Monday. For that reason De Boer has been known to refer to himself as a "butler".
When Yvo de Boer applied for the job of executive secretary of the UN's climate bureau, there was little chance he would get the job. His predecessor, Joke Waller-Hunter, who had unexpectedly died, was from the Netherlands too. It is very unusual for the UN to give a top job to the same country twice in a row, and anyway, it was a developing country's turn. But de Boer was simply the best candidate, even after an extra selection round was held.
The climate bureau was created to support the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the official name for the treaty that came out of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. It in charge of collecting data on greenhouse gas emissions from all the countries that are party to the treaty. It is also in charge of organising climate conferences, such as the one that started in Copenhagen on Monday. For that reason De Boer has been known to refer to himself as a "butler".
