– British High Commissioner
BRITISH High Commissioner to Guyana, Mr. Fraser Wheeler said, recently, that the developed world has the technology and capital; but the big question facing them is whether they can summon a collective political will, in Copenhagen, to seal a highly ambitious agreement to tackle climate change.

He made the point during a lecture titled ‘Climate Change – Challenges to Governance in CARICOM Countries’, delivered at Regency Suites Hotel, on Hadfield Street, Georgetown.

“The threat of climate change is acute and will affect our prosperity, health and security. The world could be transformed by the middle of this century.

“We can define the future we wish for ourselves or we can let events define it for us. That is the simple, crucial choice before us. There are no engineering or economic reasons why we cannot define the future,” he told the gathering, which included eminent private and public sector representatives.

Wheeler said the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) demonstrated the breadth of support for a high ambition deal from governments that represent one-quarter of the world’s countries.

The diplomat said the shape of the bargain that must be struck is clear; it must reflect the industrialised world’s responsibility for most of the accumulated carbon burden (economy-wide emissions caps).

He went on: “It (the agreement) must also look forward to where the future growth of the burden will come from, as the emerging economies grow and prosper. This means viable programmes of action to reduce emissions.

“The industrialised world must also bring, to the table, finance for adaptation and mitigation in the developing world that will amount, by 2020, to $100 billion a year.”

Wheeler said the United Kingdom (UK) has done a lot to make a deal possible at Copenhagen.

He related that, in 2005, the Exeter Conference transformed the global debate on the science of climate change; in 2006, the UK published the Stern Report, deepening the global understanding of the economics of climate change and, in 2007, it sponsored the first ever debate on the issue at the United Nations Security Council.

In addition, Wheeler said, this year, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown initiated, at the CHOGM, a Copenhagen launch fund of $10 billion, with specific funding streams for small islands and other vulnerable countries.

Wheeler said the UK is acutely aware of the potential impacts of climate change on a vulnerable region like the Caribbean.

“Therefore, in this region, the UK, aside from our funding of the multilateral programmes, has been actively supporting better disaster management, the development of a regional strategy, better economic planning through an economic review of climate change impacts, building of capacity for the regional task force on climate change, helping the region develop a stronger international voice in the run-up to Copenhagen and consistent help, from the outset, with Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy,” he stated.