We gave the Earth Summit a report card!
How did it score?

4 September 2002
US jeered, Summit denounced

While the Earth Summit has been a disaster in its official conclusions, it's at least rewarding to see that the international community hasn't been fooled by rhetoric. Today was another day of action in protest of inaction. Inside and outside the halls of Sandton, there has been a rousing challenge to US claims that it has behaved as a responsible planetary citizen here in Johannesburg.
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3 September 2002
Day of action in Johannesburg

Activists from Greenpeace and other organisations, assembled outside the convention centre here wearing t-shirts saying 'Open Your Eyes' in the official languages of the United Nations. Holding up personal sirens and whistling shrilly, the protestors signalled their alarm to the Heads of State. Police moved in quickly and moved the demonstrators off the summit grounds, detaining two.
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3 September 2002
Exxon buys summit

Last night, the US delegation in the backrooms of the summit held the future to ransom, forcing delegates to accept that the US would only agree to stump up money for clean water if the world gave up on renewable energy. Behind that insistence was US Energy policy, authored by the big oil interests that elected Bush and Cheney. The result was a 'Plan of Action' that failed 2 billion of the world's poorest while failing the planet's future at the same time.
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2 September 2002
Summit 'flop' says fish

Our expert marine correspondent C. Creature is in Johannesburg this week and is reporting from the Earth Summit that there is something fishy about “the first victory of the summit” and the great claims to protect threatened fish stocks. More>>

2 September 2002
Summit removes language that would have put trade first, Earth second.

In an example of what African leadership at this conference should be, Dr. Tewolde Egziabher of Ethiopia made one of the great speeches of the Summit last night. He called for removal of the WTO language on the basis that WTO regulations unfairly benefited the rich, unfairly favoured trade over environmental protection, and ran counter to the principles that the Earth Summit had been convened to stand for More>>

1 September 2002
Why are we being imitated?

They seemed innocent enough. Just little business-card sized pamphlets, small enough to be slipped into the wallet of any delegate, asking one simple question at the preparatory meetings for the Earth Summit in Bali: 'Why are you here?' We answered our own question with a four-point checklist of action needed to save our world. More>>

28 August 2002
Traditional adversaries call for action on climate change

Greenpeace and industry coalition World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) were 'fighting like cats and dogs' ten years ago in Rio, in the words of Greenpeace Political Director Remi Parmentier. Today, they agreed to put aside their differences to join in sending one historic signal: business and the environmental community are united in demanding governments adopt a global framework on climate change.
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What You Can Do

Choose positive energy: Urge world leaders to kick-start the renewables revolution. Sign up to the petition.

Tell Kofi Annan what you think: Write to United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan to urge him to put the Earth Summit back on track.