THERE is, rather unusually, a feeling of optimism around the Paris climate change talks.
Campaigners are allowing themselves to believe that maybe, just maybe, there could be an agreement made by the countries present that could actually make a difference.
It is looking increasingly likely that countries will agree to limit warming to 1.5C.
Today sees the start of a full week of minister-led talks. This is in itself unusual. The document to be negotiated is 20 pages long and has been agreed on schedule. Ministers will have a full week in which to reach agreement. Saturday will still be a big day but there should be substantial progress before we get there.
There are clearly sticking points. You have government ministers negotiating, and around them you have, senators, congressmen, first ministers, prime ministers, crown princes and others lobbying and making sure that no deal impacts unfairly on their homeland.
There are the implications of the Republicans in the US continuing to vote down any move Obama makes to tackle climate change.
It is still early days; there is going to be much horse trading to come.
We will see trade-offs between the demands of developing countries and those of the developed. One of those demands will be for money to help with the impacts of climate change.
The wealthier nations will insist that this finance is matched by those developing countries meeting targets.
Martin Kaiser of Greenpeace, who has been to a few of these events in his time, says progress is far better than it was in 2009 when the world gathered in Copenhagen.
The UK Government has acted reprehensibly over climate change. Promising to help with the impacts of climate change but taking from the international aid budget, in a breach of what was agreed at Copenhagen.
If we do not do what we sign up to, what right to we have to hope that anyone else will.
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