Copenhagen conference opens today

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change opened this morning with the usual calls from UNFCCC Secretariat Yvo de Boer and Danish Prime Minister Lars Rasmussen calling for the need for a "strong, ambitious climate agreement here in Copenhagen."

After the obligatory singing from a youth choir, and a somewhat dramatic video of a young girl envisioning her future in where no climate agreement, the conference officially kicked off on what felt like rather a somber mood, as speaker after speaker reminded the delegates from over 190 countries on the urgency of creating a climate agreement.

Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) addressed the stolen emails from the University of East Anglia, declaring that the "panel has a record of transparent and objective assessment stretching over 21 years performed by tens of thousands of dedicated scientists from all corners of the globe". 

During the initial ten days of the conference, most of the work will be carried out by negotiators refining proposals for reduction of CO2 emissions, adaptation, and increasing funds for mitigation.

The most crucial part of the conference will be the final two days, when 110 world leaders will arrive at the conference to ultimately "seal the deal" for a global climate treaty.