More than 150 world leaders kick off Paris climate summit

A global climate change summit opened at a heavily guarded airport convention center outside Paris on Monday, with roughly 151 world leaders gathered to try and hammer out an agreement for 196 countries to cut their greenhouse gas emissions. "Never before has a responsibility so great been in the hands of so few," said United Nations climate chief Christina Figueres in her opening remarks. "The world is looking to you."

Before the summit opened, President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping met and emphasized the important role their countries need to play in curbing climate change. "Nowhere has our coordination been more necessary and more fruitful," Obama said. "As the two largest carbon emitters, we have both determined that it is our responsibility to take action." You can watch Obama and Xi arrive at the summit below.

About 180 nations have already submitted their own plans to curb or reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, but some big disagreements remain. The biggest, The Associated Press says, is over how much developing nations will be expected to participate in cutting carbon emissions, and how to determine which countries are still "developing" — India, China, and Qatar (the world's richest nation, per capita) were classified as developing in the 1997 Kyoto climate change agreement. The U.S. and Europe insist that all nations pull their weight this time around, while India is pushing another two-tier system. Fights are also expected over how much aid poorer countries will receive to adopt clean energy sources, and what compensation, if any, small island nations will get if their land disappears due to rising sea levels.

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