Why Western leaders 'shun' Rio+20

During the first few days of my arrival at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, I had been asking different people from different countries a question – “What do you expect from the ‘Rio+20’ conference?” Their answers varied, but they largely shared a pessimistic view of the prospects for the conference. On June 16, a Brazilian senator told me that the heads of state of many countries may be absent from the “Rio+20” conference, officially known as the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro.

Currently, only over 70 heads of state are certain to attend the conference, far fewer than the number of attendees at the previous conferences in 1992 and 2002 respectively or at the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. Among the heads of state of developed countries, only France's newly elected President Francois Hollande is certain to attend the conference, which, however, will probably be just a show.

There are multiple reasons for developed countries’ lack of interest in the “Rio+20” conference. First, the public enthusiasm for environmental protection has waned. A recent Pew poll found that 50 percent of American respondents would support new measures introduced by the federal government for strengthening environmental protection, 29 percent want the government to continue with existing environmental protection measures, while 19 percent would oppose any new measure for strengthening environmental protection. Due to the declining public enthusiasm for environmental improvement, the “Rio+20” conference has naturally become low on the agenda of Western nations.

Second, Western politics is rife with opportunism and short-sightedness. The “Rio+20” conference, which is unlikely to produce any breakthroughs, may become ballot-box poison for U.S. President Barack Obama and other Western leaders facing re-election.

Third, many Western countries, especially the E.U. member states, are mired in fiscal and budget crises, so their leaders have chosen to “shun” the conference.

Sustainable development requires redefinition of costs, including short-term and long-term economic and social costs. Taking a new path of industrialization and building a green economy is an inevitable choice for developing countries which seek both sustainable development and modernization. Therefore, developing countries have shown great enthusiasm for the “Rio+20” conference. China will send a larger and higher-level delegation to the conference, and the side event held by the Chinese delegation centered on the theme of technological innovation and sustainable development is expected to be the most popular and influential activity at “Rio+20.”

India said in the run up to the conference that in the next few years, it will cut its carbon emission by 20 percent to 25 percent, increase fuel efficiency standards, improve the efficiency of power generation and the use of energy, including renewable energy, and make great efforts to promote inclusive and green development. African countries and least developed countries (LDCs) have also shown great interest in the “Rio+20” conference. By attending the conference, LDCs hope the rest of the world will hear their call for sustainable development, and that developed countries will fulfill their environmental obligations.