Hijjah 24, 1431, Nov 30, 2010, SPA -- The U.N. annual conference on climate change opened on Monday in the Mexican resort city of Cancun, and the 12-day meeting will focus on increasing funding for climate adaptation, protecting forests, and transferring clean technology to poorer countries.| There are few world leaders attending this year's conference, in contrast to last year's summit in Copenhagen. Those talks ended without an agreement on a global treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012. As a result, the United Nations is playing down expectations for this year's conference in Cancun. At a press conference last week, a U.N. senior political advisor Bob Orr said “significant progress is possible.” President Felipe Calderon of Mexico appealed for common purpose at the opening meeting. “Climate change is already a reality for us,” he told delegates. “During the next two weeks, the whole world will be looking at you. It would be a tragedy not to overcome the hurdle of national interests.”
