Cancun

Here in sunny, militarized, and Vegazoid Cancun for the COP 16 talks. Arrived in the evening last night, checked into the hotel. It’s pretty chaotic.

I’ll try to post regularly over the next week, while I’m here, since I probably won’t be doing much work on my book. but here’s this from Climate Wire. Sounds about right:

Sandy, white beaches and a ‘toxic’ issue confront negotiators as Cancun talks begin (11/29/2010)

To hear climate change negotiators describe it, this week’s U.N. global warming summit in Cancun, Mexico, is shaping up like a confab of homebuilders.

Delegates say they are “laying foundations,” setting up “frameworks” and installing the “building blocks” for a future treaty.

They might also need a bomb shelter. Analysts say a blast is ready to detonate, and it’s called the Kyoto Protocol.

“It is one of those issues that could blow up in a toxic way,” one British climate diplomat told ClimateWire.

As negotiators from 192 countries descend on the Latin American city, best known for its sandy, white beaches and spring break nightlife, many delegates still carry the bitterness of last year’s contentious climate conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. At the same time, participants insist, they spent much of 2010 trying to repair the rifts and are ready to get to work.