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Outgoing United Nations climate chief Yvo de Boer sent an urgent message to wealthy industrialized nations on Tuesday reminding them about previous promises to help the world’s poorer nations to adapt to a changing world due to global warming.  Without a firm show of funds, he said the pursuit of a global climate agreement would remain a question mark for many as the December COP-16 talks in Cancun grow closer.

de Boer urged the industrialized nations to quickly present the $30 billion in aid they have pledged to deliver over the 2010-2012 period to help poor nations fight climate change impacts such as increasingly severe droughts and floods.

“Times are harsh, especially in Europe, but $10 billion a year for three years from all industrialized countries is not an impossible call,” he said.

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“Don’t make the best the enemy of the good.” - Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair

Climate Week has launched in New York City with contradictory calls to be optimistic about UN climate negotiations culminating in Copenhagen in December, but to keep our expectations low about the strength of any ultimate deal.

The actual “festivities” are all married to what UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon called “the largest climate change summit in history.” One hundred world leaders are scheduled to gather at the United Nations tomorrow, not likely to further any negotiating positions, but to add their weight to the appearance of a global consensus that climate action - overdue - is on the way.

In honor of this meeting, there are 1,000 Climate Week events booked around the world, 70 in New York City alone. It;s hard to get past a mid-town street corner without bumping into someone mid-pitch on some kind of climate change related issue.

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A panel of UN scientists has fired an opening salvo for world political leaders meeting next month in Bali to negotiate a successor to the Kyoto protocol.

And it’s a stern warning of what’s at stake if governments fail to take action, far stronger than three previous IPCC reports despite lively debate – highlighted by objections from the U.S., China and India — among about 130 governments who gave final approval.

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A new survey has found growing global awareness of man’s role in climate change, together with a sense of urgency around curbing greenhouse-gas emissions. The challenge now is to get world leaders to take the necessary action.

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UN leader Ban Ki-moon says global warming is the biggest struggle facing mankind, and that the Bush administration, a strong opponent of the Kyoto Protocol, has finally awakened to the seriousness of the issue.

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A growing consensus of scientists and others says greenhouse gases are causing civil wars in places like Sudan and Afganistan. The conflicts are aggravated by a scarcity of resources due to floods and drought, which are caused by climate change.