Executive summary: Global emissions must be cut by at least 50% by 2050. The “aspirational targets”, that are being promoted by some at such as APEC or the ‘major economies meeting’ in Washington DC will not be effective in securing the emission reductions required. Recognizing that the non-binding targets in the United Nations Framework on Climate Change were inadequate to protect the climate, the international community agreed binding emission cuts – for industrialized nations – in Kyoto in 1997. A strong Mandate in Bali is a first critical step towards the negotiation of essential agreements that can peak emissions by 2015. Without this step the world cannot have confidence that the international community is seriously tackling this issue.
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