Right-Sized Expecations for Copenhagen?

What does it mean that world leaders have now come out publicly and right-sized the expectations for Copenhagen? Now the work this December in Copenhagen is being framed as a “stepping stone” to an international agreement to be worked out sometime in 2010 ... or down the road. According to the New York Times, world leaders agreed to make the mission of Copenhagen conference to reach a less specific “politically binding” agreement that would punt the most difficult issues into the future.

Of course one of the biggest obstacles to achieving success in Copenhagen was the inability of the U.S. Congress to get action done on climate and energy legislation. Senate action is likely in “early spring” 2010 after final action on health care and the financial industry overhaul.

Right-sizing expectations – or more precisely identifying achievable outcomes – is never an easy task – not for an individual, an organization, or an international conference of 192 nations trying to come to terms with the climate crisis. Joe Romm, of Climate Progress believes the new Copenhagen goals are "good news." He believes that getting a Senate deal in 2010 will help get a global deal in the same year. The right-sized expectations in Copenhagen now make both of these goals “more likely” according to Romm. Worth reading the reactions to his post …. Some, like Richard Miller, think this new time frame gives us “more time to educate people about the magnitude of the problem.” Others, like Strohi, don’t believe a 2010 agreement will be “progressive or brave.”

President Obama leaves China with a handful of “action plans” and “road maps” on clean energy, but the elephant in the room stays behind -- what China and the U.S. will do to reduce carbon pollution remains unanswered. Not very progressive, and definitely not very brave.

At this point, I’d suggest the swarms of U.S. ngo reps planning on that Copenhagen trip just stay put. Save the money, and goodness knows the carbon emissions. We don’t need to educate the international community. Our work is here, right here in the U.S.

We still have a lot of work to do to educate Americans about the positive impacts of action on climate change: millions of new jobs, a stronger economy and a healthier planet. And, we still need to help Americans understand the consequences of inaction.