In Paris, leaders shift from pledging to save the planet to negotiating who will pay for it

Obama and French President Hollande dine together at COP21
(Image credit: Thibault Camus/AFP/Getty Images)

World leaders arrived in Paris on Monday promising to come up with an accord to stem greenhouse-gas emissions and rescue the planet from climate change. On Tuesday, they got down to brass tacks, beginning negotiations over who will bear the financial and logistical costs of helping developing nations adopt renewable energy sources and protecting them from the worst effects of climate change. French President Francois Hollande, after meeting with 12 African leaders, pledged billions of euros to help Africa adapt, while President Obama is scheduled to hear from island nations facing rising sea levels and increasingly destructive storms.

"You have now started the fundamental work," said French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. "I implore you to advance on the substance in a way that allows us to respect the strong mandate given by the diverse heads of state and government yesterday."

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.