June 18, 2007

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in Italy believe the Kyoto Protocol will have some impact in reducing the pace of world pollution, according to a poll by Lorien Consulting srl. 62.5 per cent of respondents think the international agreement will be very or somewhat effective in dealing with climate change.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in Italy believe the Kyoto Protocol will have some impact in reducing the pace of world pollution, according to a poll by Lorien Consulting srl. 62.5 per cent of respondents think the international agreement will be very or somewhat effective in dealing with climate change.

The term global warming refers to an increase of the Earth's average temperature. Some theories say that climate change might be the result of human-generated carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Earlier this year, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report which states that global warming has been "very likely"—or 90 per cent certain—caused by humans burning fossil fuels.

In 1998, several countries agreed to the Kyoto Protocol, a proposed amendment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The agreement commits nations to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. As a member of the European Union (EU), Italy ratified the protocol in May 2002.

Earlier this month during the G-8 summit in Germany, the heads of government of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States committed to halving their greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

On Jun. 9, at a joint conference with United States president George W. Bush in Rome, Italian prime minister Romano Prodi declared: "We talked about climate change, energy, our fight against poverty, our Africa policies. These are all very, very important decisions and choices that we have to make, and of course, that are going to be important for the future, the next generation, as well. (...) I think that the progress that has been made by the United States in reaching an agreement, a broad agreement on climate change has been a wonderful step forward, and I think that this is taking us in the right direction—in other words, we have to work together on these issues."

Polling Data

Do you think the Kyoto Protocol is an effective or ineffective tool to deal with climate change?

Very / Somewhat effective	62.5%
Neither	27.2%
Very / Somewhat ineffective	10.3%

Source: Lorien Consulting srl
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,000 Italian adults, conducted on Mar. 26 to Apr. 3, 2007. No margin of error was provided.