by Agence France-Presse. LONDON — U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is shifting his focus away from involvement in international climate change talks and toward new areas in the fight against global warming. Ban is to redirect his efforts from trying to push forward the international climate change negotiations to a broader agenda of promoting clean energy and sustainable development, U.N. officials told The Guardian . After his deep involvement with the failed Copenhagen summit in 2009, Ban realized world leaders were not going to strike a sweeping agreement on global warming in the next few years, the officials said. “It is very evident that there will not be a single grand deal at any point in the near future,” said Robert Orr, U.N. assistant secretary-general for strategic planning and a key adviser to Ban. “Because the circumstances have changed, the nature of his engagement is changing,” Orr added. “The relative balance of his time is shifting toward getting it done on the ground out there.” The Guardian reported that Ban was ending his hands-on involvement with international climate change negotiations. But this was played down by U.N. spokesperson Farhan Haq, who told AFP: “That’s not quite the case. He is still involved.” The paper also said that Ban will not be deeply involved in negotiations leading up to the next U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change meeting at Durban, South Africa, in December 2011. Despite the shift in focus, Orr insisted that Ban still believed an international agreement on climate change was essential, saying: “We are still going in the same direction.” Ban has previously said that it would be better to focus on individual areas than on clinching an overall deal. Before the Cancun climate conference last year, he said it would be better to make progress on areas such as financing efforts against climate change and on forestry than on reaching a sweeping agreement. But, OK, he’s still talking about climate sometimes Still, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Friday, Ban called on the United States and Europe to take the lead in combating climate change, rather than waiting for others to act. “This climate change campaign should be led, must be led by developed countries. This has started from industrial revolution, and the United States and European countries they have to be morally, politically responsible,” Ban told world elites gathered at the Davos meeting of the World Economic Forum. “The United States as a largest economy and superpower, this superpower of the world should take the political will, political leadership, and invest in it,” he added. The United Nations chief pointed out that Washington should set its own house in order instead of waiting for others to take action. “You have to do your own homework before waiting for others to do.” There are “psychological games” between the United States and Europe on one side, and China, India, and Brazil on the other, said Ban. “They ask you should do first.” Making a plea for action on climate change, Ban noted that the world has believed in “consumption without consequences” until now. “Climate change is showing us that the old model is more than obsolete. It has rendered it extremely dangerous. It is a recipe for natural disaster. It is a global suicide attack,” he charged. Related Links: Race to innovate the clean energy future heats up after the president’s address Close the public schools—that’s the answer to our deficit problems New Senate bill aims to avoid next oil spill
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U.N. Chief Ban Ki-moon shifts focus from climate fight to clean energy
