International Campaigns

G-8 Dialogue

The G8 Climate Dialogue

Italy is the host of the 2009 Group of 8 (or G8) Summit that will take place July 8 through 10th on La Maddalena, Sardinia. The Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi has stressed the need to make this year’s G8 meeting more representative through the involvement of emerging economies (China, India, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa) and Egypt (who represents the Arab, Muslim and African world). The global financial crisis will be a larger priority for the Italian Presidency, which will look to increase the cooperation between the G8 and the G20 to assist with economic and financial issues. Other key agenda items include security, the environment, energy, food security, infrastructure, development in Africa and climate change. In recent years, the environment and climate change have become issues of larger importance for the G8 Summit. The prognosis provided by the most current science and the increasingly stronger political will displayed around the world have helped place this issue on the G8 agenda. As the Kyoto protocol nears expiration, the 2009 G8 Summit provides and important opportunity for assembling world leaders to make progress in reaching a United Nations agreement in Copenhagen during the December negotiations.

History of climate in G8

The G8 nations began devoting a significant portion of their annual meeting agenda to climate change in 2005 in Gleneagles, Scotland, under the chairmanship of then-UK Prime Minister Tony Blair. At the St. Petersburg G8 summit in 2006, participants agreed to develop an effective approach to the three interrelated challenges of energy security, economic growth, and environmental protection. In 2007, the G8 met in Heiligendamm, Germany, and agreed to "consider" decisions made by the EU, Canada, and Japan to cut global GHGs by 50% by 2050. At the Hokkaido Summit in 2008, parties accepted the principal of "common but differentiated responsibilities" to aid in emissions reductions and committed to reduce greenhouse gasses by at least 50% by 2050. Leaders agreed to develop national programs to develop low-carbon technologies, aid in efforts to achieve energy security. Leaders also acknowledged the need for mid-term energy efficiency objectives and the importance of the transfer of low-carbon technology. Parties also re-committed to moving forward within the United Nations process as the central forum for negotiations on climate change, with a view toward reaching a new post-2012 emissions agreement in Copenhagen.