OSLO (Reuters) - After two years of work, and 12 years after their last attempt, 190 nations gather in Copenhagen from Monday to try to avert dramatic climate change -- what one minister called "the most difficult talks ever embarked upon by humanity." Already the sheer size of the measures needed, and splits between rich and poor about who should pay, mean that a historic U.N. pact to fight global warming and ease dependence on fossil fuels may be put off in favor of a less binding... Read Full Story
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's official news agency has denounced proposals for "carbon tariffs" on goods from big greenhouse gas emitting countries, saying on Friday that the idea could trigger trade battles with poor countries. Carbon tariffs would involve placing special duties on goods made in nations found not doing enough to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions trapping rising levels of solar heat in the atmosphere, generating global warming. Such tariffs, more broadly called "border... Read Full Story
As world leaders prepare to head to Copenhagen for talks aimed at reaching a deal to slow the pace of climate change, people around the world are experiencing environmental destruction in myriad ways, some subtle, others devastating. Here are just a few examples from recent months: DNIPRODZERZHYNSK, Ukraine - "This is not air -- this is a horror," says Natalya Maksymenko, a 25-year-old mother, screwing up her nose at the smoke belching out of factory chimneys in Dniprodzerzhynsk. Dirt... Read Full Story
NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya could lose up to 3 percent of its $35 billion GDP annually by 2030 due to global warming, a donor-funded study on the impact of climate change on east Africa's biggest economy showed on Friday. Like other countries on the world's poorest continent, Kenya has started to witness signs of climate change including the spread of diseases such as malaria and the movement of wild animals to areas where they were not present before. Kenya is just emerging from a prolonged... Read Full Story
SEOUL (Reuters Life!) - South Korea's frenetic capital lends itself to many things such as round-the-clock dining, soaking up the country's rich, tumultuous history, or watching cutting-edge technology in action. Reuters correspondents with local knowledge help visitors get the most out of a short stay in Seoul. FRIDAY 7 pm - Dive into contemporary Seoul head-first by heading to Gangnam, an affluent district south of the Han River known for corporate powerhouses, buzzing shopping complexes... Read Full Story
LONDON (Reuters) - A leading British economist said leaders at climate talks in Copenhagen next week should agree a successor to the Kyoto Protocol without a U.S. commitment to cut its greenhouse gases. Michael Grubb, a member of Britain's Committee on Climate Change and a professor at Cambridge University, said countries that signed up to Kyoto should agree on new emissions cuts. The United States, which did not ratify Kyoto, should agree to use that decision as a platform for negotiations... Read Full Story
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Coca-Cola Co said on Thursday that it will eliminate a major greenhouse gas in its new vending machines and coolers, raising the bar for climate friendly refrigeration in the food and beverage industry. Coke's Chief Executive Muhtar Kent said that the company, which sells everything from soda and juice drinks to water, will replace hydrofluorocarbon, also known as HFC, in its new vending machines and coolers by 2015. While Coke's 10 million vending machines, coolers... Read Full Story
LONDON (Reuters) - Christie's is confident the recession is well and truly over in the world of fine art, with a record old masters sale in London next week that includes important works by Rembrandt, Raphael and Il Domenichino. The world's largest auctioneer is calling its December 8 old masters and 19th century auction a "landmark," and pre-sale estimates range from 45-63 million pounds ($75-105 million), its highest ever for such a sale. "This auction promises to be a landmark sale for... Read Full Story
SEOUL (Reuters) - A pro-Pyongyang newspaper confirmed on Friday the secretive North has revalued its currency, a move analysts said was aimed at curtailing a burgeoning market economy and clamping down on merchants. The communist North's official media has kept mum over widespread reports that it had lopped two zeroes of the value of its currency this week, a move that instantly cut the worth of savings by a hundredth unless, according to one report, they are deposited in state banks. The... Read Full Story
LONDON (Reuters) - Climate skeptics, people who doubt the science on global warming, must not be allowed to sabotage U.N. climate talks which start next week, Britain's Energy and Climate Secretary said Thursday. "I do think that we have to beware of the climate saboteurs, the people who want to say the science is somehow in doubt, and want to cast aspersions on the whole process," Ed Miliband told reporters at a briefing. "I'm not claiming there's a conspiracy, but there are interests that... Read Full Story
