UN climate conference kicks off quietly

New York Times : The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is holding its annual meeting this week and next in Doha, Qatar. The current meeting so far promises to be much lower in intensity than the previous three, which were held in Durban, South Africa, in 2011; Cancún, Mexico, in 2010; and Copenhagen in 2009. One of the main topics of discussion will be a global climate change treaty, the details of which the delegates pledged last year to work out by 2015. A number of issues still need to be resolved, including how to verify compliance and how to guarantee equity between rich and poor nations. Because the US is one of the world’s biggest greenhouse gas emittersâmdash;along with Chinaâmdash;it is expected to play a huge role in the success or failure of the convention to reach an agreement.