UN General Assembly
2011

our calendar of events and brace for every six months. For us, each year’s recovery efforts could become next year’s destruction point. On behalf of my delegation, I extend my condolences to and empathize with all those who were affected by Hurricane Irene. For reasons such as these, each year we come before this Assembly to report on the deterioration not only of the environment, but also of climate change negotiations. With full knowledge that these impacts are projected to increase over time, we believe that we can build on a number of outcomes agreed to in Cancún. We also believe that although some responses might not meet every Member State’s expectation, they could act as catalysts and springboards for new approaches and new solutions in Durban. As witnesses to environmental degradation at a time when reliance on the ecosystem to provide energy for basic needs continues to intensify, we as a people cannot continue to ignore the subject of climate change. We believe that climate change is an energy- related issue and that the provision of reliable,