Climate change

The Rio+20 Summit comes amidst the climate, food and economic crises we have been experiencing in recent years.

The crisis of capitalism is forcing corporations to seek new sources of profit, and to ensure that they don't lose the ones they already have. Their lobby has been preparing for the Rio +20 summit, defining the concept of Green Economy to serve corporate purposes. It is being used as a clever cover to justify the commodification and financialisation of natural resources, which are key ingredients for their profits.

The stakes will be high for decision-makers at the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (COP 17), which will be held 28 November through 9 December in Durban, South Africa. Not only are the emission reduction targets established by the 1997 Kyoto Protocol set to expire in 2012, but another major climate meeting, the Earth Summit, RIO+20, is coming up in June 2012.