After 10 days of bargaining, debate, protests, speeches, presentations, negotiations, renegotiations, and etcetera, the World Summit on Sustainable Development is over. What remains behind is a 70-page non-binding plan and a burning question: Was anything achieved? Well — the plan does include a relatively strong stance on improving sanitation and protecting fish stocks, leading one observer to wryly note, “It’s good news if you don’t have a toilet or if you’re a fish. Otherwise, it’s nothing.” The plan also contains resolutions to curb species loss and phase out agricultural subsidies in wealthy countries, but leans more toward the “nothing” front on energy, where the U.S. successfully blocked efforts to establish timetables for increasing reliance on clean sources. In general, the post-conference mood was one of disappointment, despite heroically Panglossian efforts by the organizers to view it as a success.
