In Indonesia, the international environmental summit in Bali heard pleas Tuesday from communities affected or threatened by catastrophe caused by global warming. Speakers including farmers, activists and aid workers called for a vast increase in international funding to offset the impact of rising seas, droughts and other crises. The “Adaptation fund” has drawn contributions of just $67 million. Meanwhile, Australia’s ratification of the Kyoto Protocol drew widespread praise but questions about the country’s reliance on coal. Shane Rattenbury of Greenpeace International said Australia will need to make drastic changes as the world’s biggest coal exporter.

Shane Rattenbury: “It should have happened much sooner, but it’s good news, especially here at these climate negotiations, that Australia will now be a positive player rather than a wrecker when it comes to the Kyoto Protocol. That said, Australia still has a great challenge. As the world’s biggest coal exporter or as an enormous coal exporter, Australia has to really ask itself a question: is it going to get serious and deal with climate change, or is it going to keep exporting coal and simply fuel the problem and make it worse?”

With Australia’s signing, the US is now the only developed nation not to have ratified the Kyoto Protocol.