Urgency of climate change emphasized at Mexico summit.
As the United Nations Climate Change Conference progresses in Cancún, many new reports on various aspects of climate change are being presented. A prevalent theme is the alarming recognition that even in best-case scenario forecasts, global warming is heading toward a 4-degree Celsius average temperature increase.

With immediate mitigation actions a priority for the preservation of the planet, the World Climate Summit was launched during COP 16 at the Ritz-Carlton.
Supreme Master Television reports on location.

Correspondent (F): We are here where the inaugural World Climate Summit just concluded, coinciding with COP 16. The World Climate Summit 2010 initiated a new global 10-year framework involving 300 influential companies, financiers, and government leaders dedicated to accelerating solutions to climate change.

Distinguished participants included chairman of the UN Foundation and media leader Ted Turner; Chairman of Virgin Group Sir Richard Branson; and CEO of Grupo Televisa Emiliio Azcarrago.
Correspondent F: On Saturday evening, December 4, the summit also launched the first-annual ceremony of the Gigaton Awards, honoring companies that have demonstrated leadership in the areas of climate change and global sustainability.

VOICE: Sir Richard Branson presented awards to the following six Gigaton laureates for their forward-thinking green programs and practices: international sportswear company Nike; UK-based consumer goods firm Reckitt Benckiser Group; wind energy company Suzlon of India; US-based 3M; UK-based telecommunications corporation Vodafone Group, and energy company GDF Suez of France.

Correspondent : Meanwhile at the lively Climate Change Village, the Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association continued to provide enthusiastically-received information on the organic vegan lifestyle solution to climate change, as well as free scrumptious vegan food samples.

Participant from Sweden – Vegetarian (M): I live in Sweden and I came to the climate change conference because I feel it’s important times for us to make a difference in the world.
And one of the reasons why I became a vegetarian is because I believe it’s the first and most important step I can make to make this possible.

Participant from China (F): I support you! You do great!

Participants: Be Veg, Go Green 2 Save the Planet!

Correspondent M: Reporting from Cancún, Mexico for Supreme Master Television.

VOICE: Our gratefulness, United Nations, host Mexico, World Climate Summit and all COP 16 participants working together to safeguard the planet. Let us join these noble efforts through our own eco-friendly steps such as the Earth-saving plant-based diet.

VOICE: During an October 2009 videoconference in Formosa, Supreme Master Ching Hai addressed the critical need for world leaders and individuals to adopt the most efficient measures to reverse climate change; namely the organic vegan lifestyle.

Marc Depoortere, Federal Council for Environment and Sustainable Development (FRDO-CFDD), Belgium (M): I was at a side event where new information was presented about new scientific facts. There are many bad news. It will be much more serious than we thought.

Bert Maerten, Campaign Co-ordinator for Economic Justice, East Asia, OXFAM International (M): To address the impacts of climate change, and to prevent temperature rise to go further, public policy is indeed important, together with those actions of individual citizens like ourselves, of businesses, of civil society. We indeed need to look at solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including agriculture.

Sir Richard Branson, British entrepreneur and philanthropist (M): I think the biggest damage to the world is cattle. Cattle result in enormous emissions, they also result in rainforests being cut down. And so, if people could, you know, cut down on eating cattle, it would make a dramatic difference to global warming.

Melting Arctic Sea ice causing colder winters.
Germany’s Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research has released a new study, forecasting even more frigid winters ahead for Northern Europe and Asia.

Lead author Dr. Vladimir Petoukhov explained that as the Arctic ice melts, the warmer air over the Barents-Kara Sea changes the atmospheric wind-stream, bringing colder air south.

He stated,“These anomalies could triple the probability of cold winter extremes in Europe and northern Asia. Recent severe winters like last year's or the one of 2005/06 do not conflict with the global warming picture but rather supplement it.” 

Our appreciation, Dr. Petoukhov and colleagues, for helping us understand how winter weather can be made even more severe by global warming. May we join in concerted actions to reverse these unfavorable conditions and restore planetary balance for the benefit of all co-inhabitantson Earth.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6AF3C720101116?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FscienceNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Science%29, http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/11/melting-arctic-sea-ice-cause-colder-northern-winters.php

Extra News
The Sri Lankan government announces plans to convert some 40,500 hectares of the Mullaittivu Jungle into a wildlife sanctuary designed to serve as a safe haven for elephants in the region. http://www.france24.com/en/20101130-slanka-turns-rebel-hideout-wildlife-sanctuary 
 
The World Bank Group and UN Development Program jointly launches the Climate Finance Options website, designed to help developing countries learn more about the funding options available to help them adapt to and reduce the impacts of climate change. http://www.climatefinanceoptions.org/cfo/index.php
http://eponline.com/articles/2010/12/01/world-bank-un-launch-climate-change-finance-website.aspx