WORLD NEWS
September 5, 2002
Protecting Our Planet
World leaders met in South Africa to talk about the environment and improving life around the globe
 Colin Powell speaks at the Earth Summit. |
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For 10 days, leaders and activists from all over the world have been meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa to tackle some of the world's biggest problems. The meeting’s official name is the World Summit on Sustainable Development, but it is more often called the Earth Summit.
Problems on our Planet
The meeting was hosted by the United Nations, which released a report about the state of the Earth before the summit began. Among some of the findings: One billion people do not have access to safe drinking water. Some 2.5 billion people lack access to sanitation, or facilities that help people dispose of waste in sewers and drains. Air pollution and contaminated water are killing millions of poor people each year, the UN reports.
Nearly 20,000 representatives from more than 200 countries participated in the meeting. Leaders talked about how to reduce the number of people living in poverty and improve access to clean drinking water in poor countries. Climate change that results from global warming was a very important topic. The protection of endangered species and forests all over the world was also high on the agenda.
A Global Plan of Action
On September 4, the final day of the summit, leaders agreed on a 71-page global action plan. The plan is designed to protect the environment and improve the lives of billions of the world's poorest people. Specifically, it addresses ways the world's nations can increase the use of natural energy while improving access to clean water, healthcare and sanitation.
Boos for the U.S.
Many people all over the world have criticized President Bush for not attending the summit. Instead, Secretary of State Colin Powell attended and was booed by many people who feel the United States should be doing more to protect the environment.
One of the biggest complaints against the U.S. is that it has not signed an environmental treaty called the Kyoto Protocol. The treaty aims to get the world's most developed nations to take specific actions to fight global warming. While U.S. officials have said they want to fight global warming, they believe the treaty would be too costly for the American economy.
An Important Beginning
Critics of the summit hope it is a lot more successful than the first Earth Summit, which was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 10 years ago. Most of the goals set at that meeting were never met. Said United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan of this year's summit: "This is just the beginning but it's an important beginning."
