A new leaked document on the current status of negotiations to determine the position on the Group of 8 (G8)'s position on climate change has revealed that the G8 is moving in the direction of undermining the scientific consensus on climate change and global warming. Documents obtained by The Observer show that the Bush administration is attempting to "completely undermine" the science on climate change with the Bush administration altering the G8's climate change document to:
- Remove all reference to the fact that climate change is a 'serious threat to human health and to ecosystems'
- Delete any suggestion that global warming has already started
- Expunge any suggestion that human activity was to blame for climate change
Moreover, whereas early drafts of the document indicated potential monetary amounts to be spent on various initiatives to address climate change, there are no such references in the new document. Earlier in the month, the senior science academies of the G8 nations, including the US National Academy of Science, issued a statement saying that evidence of climate change was clear enough to compel their leaders to take action. 'There is now strong evidence that significant global warming is occurring,' yet since that time, the United States has aggressively worked to alter the document.
Large-scale protests are planned at the G8 this year, after a rather dismal showing by activists in the United States who largely ignored last year's meeting of the G-8. While there were numerous logistical concerns with organizing protests at last years G8 Summit in Sea Island, the lack of protests was reflective of the large gaps in organization between "the left" in Europe and in North America. Still, the G-8 remains a worthy target for activists and it is only with pressure from activists at these protests and the long-term movements into which mobilization protests are incorporated that victories are won, such as the recent (albeit limited) agreement to provide some debt relief to Africa.
The G8 consists of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United States, and Russia.
