Obama Faces Tight Deadline On Climate Change : NPR

International climate negotiations get under way next week in Poznan, Poland. Hopes are high that the United States, under President-elect Barack Obama, will take on a leadership role in these ongoing talks once he is president.

The problems Obama will inherit are huge. Scientists say the world needs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions rapidly over the coming decades. That means shifting from cheap energy like coal to cleaner, but more expensive, alternatives. And nations around the world must act together.
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Obama has some ideas in mind for domestic policy. For starters, he says he intends to invest heavily and quickly in jobs to build new clean energy sources such as wind and solar.

But the governments of Western Europe are pressing for far more — they want binding emissions-reduction targets and timetables for reaching those. To create those domestically, Obama will have to work with Congress to enact tough new legislation.