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www.oakvillebeaver.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, July 7, 2010 · 10 Focus of summits now turns to the future By Nathan Howes OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Police clashed with protesters. Buildings were vandalized. Vehicles were damaged or destroyed by fire. Tear gas was used. Hundreds of people were arrested. This is what happened outside of the G20 summit. So, what happened on the inside? Ella Kokotsis, of Oakville can answer that since she was at both summits. Kokotsis volunteers as a director of external relations for the G8 and G20 Research Group based at the University of Toronto. As a part of her position, she attended her 15th G8 summit this year in Huntsville and her first G20 summit in Toronto. While the protests were going on outside the G20 summit, Kokotsis was busy inside taking notes and meeting with some well-known delegates, including Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. The G20 and G8 Research Group gets an opportunity to meet with the Prime Minister every year following the summit. Live Better · · · · · Air Conditioners Thermostats Air Cleaners Humidifiers Furnace Maintenance Your Trusted Neighbour and Partner in HVAC NO HST!* IF INSTALLED BEFORE JULY 31, 2010 A Cool Home is a Comfortable Home. · We service all makes and models Gas/Oil/Electric · No Sub Contractors · 24 hr Service - Radio Dispatched · 19 Years in Business 905.817.9800 * *Call for details. Installed From $ 1899* Get $40 off a Service Call Redeem this coupon and save $40 on a Service Call. Some conditions apply. Valid June to August 2010. "This year, we met with the Prime Minister at the end of his final press conference and presented him with a copy of our summit book -- to which he had contributed an article," said Kokotsis. "Prime Minister Harper congratulated our team on the hard work we put into our accountability report, took some questions from our group and then posed for a photo, along with Industry Minister Tony Clement." After meeting Harper, the group met with U.S. President Barak Obama en route to his final press conference at the Metro Convention Centre, but only for a moment and no photo. "Although his security detail stopped him from posing for a photo, he did take the time to stop, say hello and shake our hand," said Kokotsis. The G20 and G8 summits provided leaders of the most industrialized nations the opportunity to meet and discuss global issues with the hopes of reaching tangible commitments by the end of the three-day meetings. The summits varied in the issues that were discussed. "The G8 tackled a number of key global issues including maternal and child health, food security, African development, trade and investment and the rising nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea," said Kokotsis. "Dealing mainly with issues of the global economy, the G20 focused on deficit reduction, protecting the recovery, financial sector reform and setting in motion strong, sustainable and balanced growth." The end result of the three-day meetings produced two significant commitments. At the G8 summit, Harper led the way with his "Muskoka Initiative," in which he successfully mobilized $7.3 billion from the G8 and others over the next five years towards maternal and child health. "This money will go towards preventing 64,000 maternal deaths as well as 1.3 million deaths of children under five years of age." Meanwhile, at the G20, the biggest issue emerging from those discussions was the unprecedented agreement to cut budget deficits in half by 2013 and to reverse debt loads by 2016, with all countries on board except Japan. "Given its mounting national debt, Japan was the only exception, agreeing to half its deficit two years later, by 2015. The move is intended to restore confidence in global markets and prevent a financial collapse similar to the one in 2008." While the economy and child health gained headway, one issue that failed to make any noise in the talks was the environment, according to Kokotsis. She was disappointed with the lack of progress made towards climate change this time. "Unlike previous summits where environmental issues played a key role, commitments on climate change and biodiversity were disappointing. The G8 reaffirmed their prior commitment of reducing global emissions by 50 per cent by 2050 compared to 1990 levels," said Kokotsis. "Although they agreed that global temperatures should not exceed two degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels, they failed to set targets and timetables, deferring instead to the next UN Conference of the Parties meeting in Cancun, Mexico this fall." This year marked Kokotsis' first appearance at G20. She has noticed significant differences Ella Kokotsis between the two summits with respect to the amount of media coverage given and the types of crowds they draw. It's quite noticeable, she says. "Being at a G20 is a completely different experience than being at a G8. Although they attract an enormous media presence, G8 summits are generally more intimate gatherings and less prone to violent protest activity," said Kokotsis. "By contrast, the G20 is a more heavily controlled, business-like environment that tends to attract radical protest groups whose mission is to aggravate police and resort to property damage." And that's what happened. The media coverage of the summits was extensive, but more attention was being given to what was happening outside the summits, rather than what was happening on the inside. Kokotsis is disappointed with the way the coverage was handled. "Apart from the devastation to public and private property, the other tragedy is that the focus of the media quickly shifted to the events on the street, diverting attention from the substance of the issues being tackled at both summits," said Kokotsis. "Moreover, those who came to Toronto to protest peacefully about legitimate issues were completely overshadowed by the actions of a few violent perpetrators." Now that the summits are over and the City of Toronto is left to clean up the mess, the focus now turns towards the commitments made and what will happen next. "An important focus of the leaders at this G8 was accountability and being transparent about complying with the promises they make. This year, the G8 released their first-ever accountability report, outlining in detail their compliance with a number of development-related commitments," said Kokotsis. "They further agreed to continue with open and transparent reporting, committing to release a report at next year's G8 that takes stock of their health and food security commitments." The G8 summits are held annually with a fixed-hosting rotation of every eight years. Canada can expect to host its next G8 summit in 2018. The G20 summit is currently held semiannually, but will change to a fixed-annual meeting similar to the G8, after the 2011 summit in France. The next G20 summit will take place in Seoul, South Korea this November. It is not known at this time when or if the G20 summit will return to Canada.