With one set of climate talks winding down in Washington and another kicking off in Bolivia, the global climate debate is developing an "us vs. them" tone.
The U.S. State Department just finished hosting the Major Economies Forum, a group that includes North American and European countries as well as China, India, and Brazil. Participants discussed what could be achieved at the next set of U.N. climate negotiations in Cancun, Mexico this November, focusing on how to help poorer countries adapt to climate change.
Meanwhile, in a small Bolivian village, Evo Morales has convened representatives from over one hundred poorer countries as well as activists and NGOs for a "people's conference" on climate change. The message is clear: We weren't invited to your party, so we're throwing our own.
The attendees -- who include everyone from NASA climate rock star James Hansen to Hugo Chavez to James Cameron -- are demanding "climate reparations," or funding to help mitigate the ecological disasters brought on by years of greenhouse gas emissions by the developed world. This idea was widely discussed at Copenhagen. If key players ever sign on to a global climate agreement, it will almost surely include funding to help developing nations adapt to climate change.