大象传媒

Sue MacGregor reunites environmentalists and politicians who fought fossil fuel industry lobbyists to secure the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol.

The protocol which, for the first time, committed 38 developed countries to collectively cut their greenhouse gas emissions, took a gruelling diplomatic struggle to reach agreement in December 1997.

After ten days of intense negotiations in Japan's ancient capital of Kyoto, the Argentinian diplomat overseeing efforts to strike the world's first legally binding climate agreement suspended the committee session and huddled with key players in an attempt to prevent the collapse of the talks.

"We were making public policy on probably the defining issue of our time at three in the morning amongst people who hadn't slept for 48 hours," recalls Joanna Depledge, who gained a close-up view of the Kyoto Protocols's make or break moment as a member of the United Nations Climate Secretariat. At about 5am, the morning after the official end of the conference, there was an agreement. When Chairman Estrada declared the so-called committee of the whole was recommending the adoption of the protocol "by unanimity", the conference floor erupted in cheers.

Joining Sue MacGregor to look back on the making of the deal, and its impact, are Joanna Depledge formerly part of the the UN's Climate Secretariat, former British Environment Minster John Gummer, campaigner Tony Juniper of Friends of The Earth, and lawyer Farhana Yamin, who was then policy advisor to the Alliance of Small Island Nations.

Producer: Emily Williams
Series Producer: David Prest

A Whistledown production for 大象传媒 Radio 4.