>> this week's united nations rio + 20 conference in brazil has the power to define a more sustainable future for us all. with plenty of risks attached. between industrialised nations and emerging economies. and all delegates are under pressure to prove that this meeting can be more than just another talking shop. of global 3000 on the rio + 20 conference. we want to bring you in on what is being debated -- and here's what's coming up -- sustainable at any cost? how environmentally sound are brazil's hydroelectric dams? emissions trading -- does europe's climate protection market work? and climate killer air conditioning -- an indian company offers customers a cleaner alternative. so what kind of future do we want? that is the official theme of rio + 20 and a very tall order. two decades after the first un conference on sustainable development countries are still struggling to agree on how to tackle a global problem like climate change beyond the national level. host nation brazil is pushing for more sustainable energy sources at home. having successfully pioneered ethanol production,

after the break, we will be getting an update from the united nations conference on sustainable development, which is open in the brazilian city of rio de janeiro. >> doing a bit of some hopping. there has already been some controversy. we'll talk about it a bit more after the break. >> stay with us. >> welcome back, everyone. protecting the environment and reducing poverty -- those are the goals of the rio +20 some of that is under way in brazil. >> at the opening ceremony, the united nations secretary general said time was not on our side. ahead of the summit, negotiators agreed to a draft communique, which focuses on encouraging grain economic growth and boosting united nations efforts to protect the environment and promote sustainable growth, but many environmentalists say the statement does not go far enough. >> the summit in rio de janeiro is expected to produce a huge document on protecting the environment and reducing poverty, but it is what is not in that document that is worth considering. i talked about that with our correspondent at the summit. >> the final document acknowledges a multitude of problems the world is facing

i have been focusing on rio plus 20 because the united nations focused on that. you are right. that's where it began. we are worse off than the predictions 40 years ago. time to take action and time for sacrifice by the way. i know people think that perhaps we shouldn't ask the american people to sacrifice very much from just about anything these days, but we have to sacrifice. we have to sacrifice our old ideas. i was involved in the first day in 1970 for stockholm plus 40 conversations. the really important thing that is missing right now that was available in 1970. when the first earth day occurred. we created such a stir and my hometown, we carried coffins down the street to point out the threat of air pollution. in 1970 the congress and the senate passed the clean air act, 100-0. can you imagine that happening today? the american public is asleep. we need to wake up. we need to drive -- this is a democratic system after all. thomas jefferson was right. we have the government we deserve. we need to step forward and challenge these people and look beyond citizens united and

a major united nations conference has opened in the brazilian city of rio they janeiro -- rio de janeiro. it is 20 years since they hosted the summit. guard ban ki moon warned her time is running out and progress has been too slow. david looks of the challenges ahead. >> scientists are worried we are putting the planet beyond its limits, that economic growth is taking a cost on the environment you're a good -- on the environment. the talks are about charge take a more sustainable course, and it met with an appeal from a teenager. >> you have 72 hours to decide the fate of your children, my children, my children's children. at it is notme is thu just nice to the gap. people depend on it. getting a meaningful agreement is proving difficult, so what is set to be agreed by the leaders at this summit this week? first, a sustainable development goals, although they have not been defined. get-go promised to protect the ocean -- a promise to protect the ocean and now and economic commitment. today at the forest, the deputy prime minister. david cameron and barack obama are among the leaders not

nevertheless, the united nations secretary general is calling the meeting a success. >> rio+20 is not an end but the beginning. it is time for all of us to think globally and long term. >> many european delegates had hoped for more. >> at least we have avoided complete failure, the common statement we have agreed to does not fill everyone's wishes, but it is something to build on. >> at this stage, few people are expecting that anything more can be accomplished before the summit ends on friday. >> even if the summit is nothing to brag about, there are plenty of positive stories about how people are helping the environment. >> that is right. here's an example -- every year, the united nations' hands out the champions of the earth award. this year's winners include a masai warrior, who is putting green into the economy of kenya. and he used to hike through the hills, but now, he does the rounds at the wheel of a jeep as a member of a local conservation group. he regularly goes on patrol year. the kenyan savannah attracts tourists from around the world, and the masai were closely with an

leaders from more than 100 countries gathered in brazil for the rio + 20 earth summit, the largest united nations conference ever. the gathering comes 20 years after the 1992 u.n. earth summit in rio de janeiro, when leaders pledged to protect the planet by endorsing treaties on biodiversity and climate change. since then, few of the development goals have been reached in areas like food security, water, global warming, and energy. on wednesday, the brazilian president welcomed world leaders under a cloud of criticism that the summit will fall far short of its promise to establish new goals. >> we know the cost of not acting will be greater than taking necessary actions, even though they may face assistance and may be politically complicated. >> a new report by friends of the earth international warns of multinational corporations having an undue influence over the summit. negotiators had agreed on the draft before the heads of state arrived on wednesday. many groups working on environmental and poverty issues have criticized the agreement for being too weak. this is the greenpeace political dire

. >> these are meeting in brazil for the start of the rio plus 20 earth summit, the largest united nationsce ever. the conference comes 20 years after the u.n. earth summit in rio de janeiro pledged to protect the planet by endorsing treaties on biodiversity and climate change. little has been done in the intervening years to reach developing goals in areas like food security, water, global warming, and energy. you and environment program executive director said leaders had to show more commitment now than they did 20 years ago. >> 20 years after rio, after all the negative trends we've described, we cannot stand before people and claim the last 20 years have succeeded in turning these trends around. >> all the negotiators have already agreed on a draft document to be approved by world leaders, many groups working on environmental and poverty issues have criticized the draft agreement saying it is far too weak. this is the greenpeace political director. a >> any progress see here and press conferences is about progress [unintelligible] >> to discuss the rio plus 20 summit and what is likel

delegation to get something done in rio and we set in motion the united nations framework convention on climate change which said you know we must prevent dangerous anthropogenic or human interference the climate system we didn't prevent it twenty years later you know we've gone from about three fifty to about four hundred parts per million it's way too far you know scientists are saying we've got to be at three fifty ok so we didn't we didn't do anything it was a different time things have got more politicized and definitely economic issues are throwing the environmental issues off the agenda. and you know i think that a lot of you would say that at the moment that makes sense but right we have to think about the future and what's actually going to happen in the long term but so i mean you mention of course the. same response from especially republican lawmakers and a lot of the american public and. this is. still more trusted than some of the institutions that people really hate i read chris's book it's a great book people think congress you know they think very lowly of it they ha

so you know i've been focused on rio plus 20 because the united nations focused on that but you're absolutely right. that is where it began. here we are, worse off than even the predictions 40 years ago. so it's time to take action and it's time for sacrifice by the way. i know people think that perhaps we shouldn't ask the american people to sacrifice very much for just about anything these days but we have to sacrifice. we have to sacrifice our old ideas. >> i would like to add to that if i may. i was involved in the first earth day, 1970 around the stockholm plus 40 conversation and the really important thing that is missing right now that was available and 1970 when the first earth day occurred, we created such a stir. my tome -- hometown of pittsburgh we wore gas masks to point out the threat of air pollution. in 1970 the congress passed and the senate passed the clean air act. 100-0. can you imagine that happening today? and the reason is the american public is asleep. we need to wake up. and we need to drive -- this is a democratic system after all and thomas jefferson was right, we wi

this one was not very well attended though, 193 nations sent leaders to rio, many others just skipped it, including the unitedpaltri solutions that emerged from all of the talking over those three days. whether or not politicians believe it exists, climate change is a growing problem. and action can be taken now to stem the damage already done. but the question remains, is there any political will to enact those solutions? making that point forcefully and in the face of those world leaders this week, a 7-year-o17d girl is our foot soldier. she entered the global date with history competition and she won with this video. we could not tear ourselves away from it here in nerd land. here's how she ends it. >> what kind of future do i want? where education encourages innovative thinking and we run with natural processes and not against them. i want a future where leaders will stop talking and start acting. i want a future where leaders lead. >> a jury of britney's fellow environmental activists, including leo dicaprio, chose her entry and she traveled to rio to give a speech directly before all of the world leader

. >>> united nations officials, helen clark, urging western nations to go green by cutting out cars and televisions. great. she'll further promote that idea during the rioday in brazil. i wonder if that's going to be televised. ali? >> alisyn: just over an hour from now, a house committee will take a vote on holding attorney general eric holder in contempt of congress. last night holder and congressman darryl issa played a game of he said, he said, after about the missing fast and furious documents. >> attorney general said in the meeting that if we go forward with contempt, we get no cooperation from that time forward. on the other hand, he said if we would take the briefing, we'd have to close the case. so we're sort of between a rock and a hard spot. >> we have made to date available unprecedented number of documents. i think the ball is in their court. they rejected what i thought was an extraordinary offer on our part. >> alisyn: here with analysis is fox news legal analyst, peter johnson, jr. peter, great to see you. sounds like they're at a stalemate. as i understand it, correct me if i am wrong, darryl issa wants to see more documents so they ca

as fox news reported back in april, -- quote -- "the main goal of the much-touted rio plus 0 united nations conference on sustainable development is to makes dramatic and enormous changes in, as one of the documents put it, a fundamental shift in the way we think and act. utility mact is huge part of this effort to change the way we live and to spread the wealth around." and that's what they're talking about down there. we start invoking new tax system. it was secretary-general of the u.n., he proposes how sustainable development changes must be addressed. he included, i'm quoting him, "more than a $2.1 trillion a year in wealth transfers from rich countries to poorer countries in the name of fostering green infrastructure, climate adaptation and other measures." he's advocating new carbon taxes on us of industrialized countries, cost about $250 billion a year or .06% of gross domestic product. other taxes are mentioned but not specified. further unspecified price hikes that extend beyond fossil fuels to anything debris riefd from agriculture, fisheries, forestry or other kinds of land and