G8 Summit in Germany

This Wednesday(June 6th, 2007), Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, attended the G8 Summit in Germany, where one of the biggest topics was global warming. The Group of 8 — now more than 8 — is a collection of the world’s strongest economies (The U.S., Great Britain, Japan, Germany, Canada, France, Italy, the EU, and recently, Russia), one of which hosts an annual meeting to discuss what the members, as global leaders, should be concerned with. This year’s theme was “Growth and Responsibility” with a focus on the environment.

Prior to the meeting, it was reported that Shinzo Abe supported the proposal of cutting greenhouse emissions by 50% by the year 2050.

What would this mean for business in Japan?

For starters it could mean that businesses opening in Japan may have to uphold new standards, or that the products being imported into Japan by U.S. businesses will have to learn and maintain new guidelines.

This year’s Summit Host, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, agreed with Abe’s stance, but the Bush Administration does not want to be held to specific numbers, preferring instead to develop plans on what to do when the Kyoto Treaty expires in 2013.

This certainly doesn’t mean the matter is closed. In fact, just the opposite: Japan will host the G8 Summit in 2008 in northern Hokkaido island, and Abe vows to promote a heavy environmental theme.

The U.S. is the largest emitter of carbon-dioxide, at nearly 22% of the world’s emissions, with China close behind. Japan falls 4th on the list, at 4.7%.

Sarah S.

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