Countries to watch out for in Copenhagen

The Guardian’s countdown to Copenhagen identifies the main players at the summit…which I’m pleased to see includes the Maldives, regarded as the little nation with the big voice.

Having reported in the Maldives at a time when people had never heard of the country unless they had been there for a honeymoon, I am constantly amazed at the huge amount of media that the country has generated since Nasheed became the country’s fourth President last November.

Everest cabinet meeting to go ahead

After it was announced last month by Forest ministry Deepak Bahara, there were doubts in Nepal that the proposed cabinet meet on Mount Everest would ever come to fruition.

But on Friday the prime minister’s office said the plan was set for 4 December.

The meet, just ahead of the UN summit in Copenhagen, will be held to raise awareness of the threat of Climate Change to the Himalayan region, including the melting of glaciers.

As one of the poorest countries in the world and with low levels of infrastructure and irrigation, Nepal’s poor will likely be some of the worst-hit by climate change.