|PIC1|The international community must agree a more ambitious climate change deal if the world’s poorest people are to be spared the potentially devastating impact of climate change, warns World Vision.

The Christian development agency said governments were faced with an urgent ‘to do’ list after failing to reach a legally binding agreement on carbon emissions at the UN climate summit in Copenhagen.

Two weeks of negotiations ended last week with a limited agreement that “recognises” the scientific case for keeping average worldwide temperatures below 2C but does not commit countries to targets to reduce their carbon emissions. The Copenhagen Accord was noted by negotiators but not formally adopted.

“For vulnerable countries this is an outcome – after a two-year process – that is neither fair, ambitious, or legally binding,” said Kate Laburn-Peart, head of policy and research at World Vision UK.

“Pledges by major emitting countries so far add up to a world which will heat up by more than 3 degrees.”

Ms Laburn-Peart welcomed the pledge from developed countries to channel $100 billion a year to developing countries by 2020 to help them meet the costs of countering climate change and cutting their carbon emissions.

She expressed concern, however, that the commitments were vague and said nothing of how the funds would be raised or delivered to the recipient countries.

“There is no set path for how the gap in targets, funding and binding commitments will be secured,” she said.

“This was an historic opportunity to resolve these issues, with 193 countries in attendance. There remains a long and urgent ‘to do’ list.”

Ms Laburn-Peart said the accord was not strong enough to prevent “widespread devastating impacts” on millions of communities in small island states and the world’s least developed nations.

“The cost to the poor – in lives and livelihoods – is too high to let the hopes of tackling climate change die in Copenhagen,” she added.

“Every month of delay will lead to further consequences for children, the vulnerable, and the unborn.”

Juvinal Dias works in East Timor for L’ao Hamutuk, a partner of the Catholic aid agency Progressio. He is angry at the failure of world leaders to take urgent action on climate change, warning that fishermen in his country are set to lose their livelihoods and be displaced to the mountain areas.

“As our sea levels rise, some important places will disappear,” he said.

The Copenhagen Accord was brokered in the last few hours of the summit by the US, China, India, South Africa and Brazil. Environment ministers are due to meet again in Germany in February and Mexico later in the year to negotiate a binding climate agreement.