Obama's decision to attend the close of negotiations instead came a day after India pledged to reduce emissions by 20-25 per cent by 2020.
The world's fifth largest emitter, India previously said that it would primarily protect its economic interests during the summit, and that a binding agreement was unlikely in Copenhagen.
Much like China, India has said in the past that they would not be "taking the lead" in the reduction of emissions (and other environmental regulations within the country), unless much ground was made by the U.S. and other members of the G8. The reason given was that any policy created or regulations passed that placed any undue hardships on their large enterprises would slow economic growth, and would put India in a competitive disadvantage. This has been a convincing argument, and one that many U.S. politicians have had trouble rebutting. The simple truth is that the U.S. has gained from bounding economic development based on a 1950's style coal & petroleum powered economy. The Indian government reading their history textbooks again, pause when asked to suddenly "take the lead" in environmental initiatives.
So does India's new attitude mean a "quality of life" attitude toward economic development or did a spate of Environmentalists suddenly get elected in the higher eschelons of India's government? Or is it simply a Bishop's move laterally, to gain worldwide recognition - after all, it's only the most developed countries that "take the lead" in environmental initiatives, right?
It may be a blend of all of the above, after all, it's a new world where the Dollar may not be pegged up much longer. It's India's game to lose right now as China and Russia rev's up their engines and are competing more closely for MNC's global contracts. The story of the United States in the better part of the twentieth century was held up for sure, by coal & non-green regulations, but India and China also are reading the latest chapter in that story - that of Los Angeles'.
Not just L.A., but Mexico City and every other major city that has made a land grab for being a super regional hub. They are learning that economic development in their bleeding edge cities who not regulated in the least, may look physically & atmospherically, like the "cancerous" cities of the developed world.
Possibly beyond this, the latest reports of global catastrophe's based on increasing use of rough energy sources also make a dent in the politics of the developing world. This should really be the only argument worth having. But at the very least, a view of a country's economy based on more than GDP, should be entertained in and around New Delhi. India has a breathtaking history of enlightenment, but it's really the vision inspired by India's economic & political leaders painting India's identity in 10 to 50 years that would do the most good globally - and the latest news out of Copenhagen is an indication of this positive wind.
