G8 Leader Agree to Cut Carbon Emissions

Leaders of the world’s richest countries committed Tuesday to “move toward a low-carbon society” and set the goal of cutting global greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050. The plan was approved at the annual summit of the Group of Eight — the U.S., Japan, Germany, Great Britain, France, Italy, Canada and Russia — held this year in Hokkaido, Japan.

Environmentalists were quick to criticize the plan, which has few specifics and sets no short-term goals. Oxfam called it a “stalling tactic,” and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said that the lack of progress was “pathetic.” Still, the agreement is a first for U.S. President George Bush, who had previously agreed only to “seriously consider” any plan to eliminate greenhouse gases. In their efforts to bring Bush on board, the G8 leaders also called on developing nations to aim for the same goal. Bush has long insisted that big emerging economies such as China and India be part of any climate change treaty.

Leaders of five major developing countries — Mexico, Brazil, China, India, and South Africa — will join the G8 leaders on Wednesday. In advance of the meeting, they called on the G8 countries to take “into account historical responsibility and respective capacities” by reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80-95 percent by 2050, while also urging developing countries to commit to a 25-40 percent cut by 2020.

Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide are blamed for the global climate change, a threat the U.N. Secretary General has described as “the defining issue of our era.”

WIDE ANGLE follows a 29-year-old Australian entrepreneur with his own plan for cutting carbon emissions. The film Burning Season premieres on July 22. Check back here for updates.