Rich countries taking climate change problem seriously?

Rich countries are the ones mostly responsible for climate change problem because of their excessive greenhouse gas emissions as the result of ever-expanding large-scale industries. Though many world leaders have acknowledged the fact that there is indeed climate change problem threatening our planet, very few of them are actually doing something to cut emissions.

World leaders are still full of promises rather than coming up with the actual plans to make massive carbon emissions cuts that would keep temperature increase below 2 degrees Celsius (3,6 Fahrenheit), and prevent climate change impact from further strengthening. G8 meeting in Italy showed that there is still no actual plan for major greenhouse gas cuts because all what G8 leaders did was tentatively agreeing to try to prevent global temperatures from rising above a fixed level. This of course is more of a moral duty than actual obligation.

How to comment on this? To start with, many environmentalists expected more as some sort of optimistic sign before the actual climate change talks in Copenhagen later this year. At this point this looks to be more a symbolic deal than obligatory commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but it is still better than nothing at all.

It still gives us enough room for hope that world leaders are aware of the magnitude of climate change problem, and the urgency that is required to halt further temperature rise. But it also leaves some doubts too, doubts about whether world is really ready to make big greenhouse gas cuts as soon as possible, or are the fears of weakening industry still too big for major emission cuts. We still have to wait to Copenhagen to see was this hope justified or not.