Sunday, December 13, 2009

A who's who guide to corporate lobbying in Copenhagen

8 December 2009
The UN climate talks have become a "must attend" for huge numbers of business lobbyists, each eager to promote their preferred "solution" to tackling climate change – which protects their business interests.
Business lobby groups have been preparing for Copenhagen for years, lobbying national governments to ensure their interests are represented at the negotiating table. Their influence is one of the reasons why governments are finding it so hard to reach agreement on emission cuts. Many of the lobbies have urged governments to block tough targets for 2020. They want easier access to off-setting through a global carbon market (avoiding emissions cuts at source) and funding for controversial technologies including carbon capture and storage (CCS), nuclear power and agrofuels.
This guide lists some of the main lobby groups found at the talks – it is not comprehensive – but highlights some of the players involved.