UCTV to Webcast International Climate Summit

By Robin Hindery

University of California Television (UCTV) will stream a live webcast of the Governors’ Global Climate Summit in Los Angeles on Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 18 and 19, as part of an international effort to engage the public in the fight against climate change. The summit, hosted by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, will bring together four other United States governors as well as officials from Australia, China, the European Union and other countries, according to Schwarzenegger’s press office. During two days of high-level negotiations, attendees will attempt to lay the groundwork for the next global agreement on climate change, which the United Nations will begin negotiating at a December meeting in Poland. “Leaders from around the world are taking action to combat global warming, and this summit reflects our common desire to work together to solve a problem that affects all of us,” Schwarzenegger said in a Nov. 11 statement. He said he hoped the collaboration would “send a powerful message to the rest of the world.” New numbers released in September by a group of international scientists showed continued growth in the world’s output of carbon dioxide, with India and China accounting for the largest increases. In the United States, the world’s second-largest polluter, emissions were up 2 percent in 2007 from the year before. Every member of society must commit to reversing that trend, Schwarzenegger has said, and he and other climate summit participants are encouraging members of the public from around the world to join in on the discussions online. Youth involvement is particularly important, as “young people across the globe have driven change on their campuses and in their communities and will continue to shape the world of tomorrow,” according to a promotional flyer for the summit. The UCTV website will run a live webcast of all major events at the summit, and video archives and audio and video podcasts of each session will be available afterward. A complete agenda is available on the UCTV site as well as on the official Governors’ Global Climate Summit website.