Right now, our team is in Bali for the UN climate conference. It's what I've heard described as, "probably the most important meeting about a meeting that will happen in your lifetime". :D

Ok, ok, joking aside, if we're going to beat this global warming thing, we need governments to get off their bottoms and take real action. And without a good outcome in Bali, that's not going to happen. Basically, governments need to ensure there's route map to agreeing deep cuts in global greenhouse emissions. And they need a good push to do so.

While doing some pushing, our political team in Bali is blogging from behind the PR firewall, read their updates on the climate blog. Here are a few of my favorite quotes...

Clair, on the Canadian government's admission that global temperature rise needs to be kept under 2°C:

Adopting a position that warming should stay as far below 2°C as possible is a definite champagne cork popping event, had it not been for the fact that Canada’s domestic climate policies seem to be 6 degrees of separation away from supporting this position.

(Read more)

Daniel on the day to day work:

It’s not easy to explain plainly what I and other civil society reps have actually been doing for all the long hours we have spent here at the Convention centre all week. The world of global climate talks is a world of rumour chasing, coffee drinking, constant huddles and meetings – with country delegations, with other NGOs, with the rest of the Greenpeace crowd.

(Read more)

Jo about the US:

I was actually impressed with the ability of chief US climate negotiator Harlan Watson, to say nothing when asked awkward questions. Which was all of them, given their pariah status. A status fully exposed by the laughter when he was asked if the US was feeling the isolation, now that Australia is all set to join Kyoto.

(Read more)

Daniel reviews the opening ceremony:

The music was pretty cheesy. But when it was over, the UN climate negotiations were formally started. At last. The most important two weeks in (climate) diplomacy over the last decade are now under way.

(Read more)

Help the team in Bali get governments do do the right thing.