This week, representatives from 190 countries are gathering in Bali, Indonesia to begin framing an international climate change agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012. The delegates are joined by thousands more -- activists, local politicians, NGOs, businesses and others -- responding to the call for action.
The talks come on the heels of a comprehensive assessment by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that presents the most sobering news on global warming to date. The IPCC, recent winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, concluded that evidence of global warming is "unequivocal," with 90% certainty that humans are the cause. According to IPCC Chairman Rajendra Pachauri, urgent action is needed to combat climate change, or the consequences for the planet could be “disastrous.”
The good news is that the IPCC has identified a wide a range of solutions for curbing greenhouse gas emissions that are both technologically feasible and economically competitive. Here at Google we are working to accelerate some of these technologies through our our recently announced Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal initiative, Google.org's RechargeIT program, and our 1.6 MW solar installation.
But our own efforts can only get us so far. That's why we are participating in the Bali conference. The world must chart the path to a clean energy future collectively.
Over the coming days, we'll share our reflections and the stories of those who are there. You can also check out the live webcast of the conference.