(This speech was made on occasion of Silver Jubilee Celebrations of the Tata Energy Research Institute in New Delhi, India)

This afternoon's subject of discussion, "Scenarios of where we are going: India and the World" was seriously discussed by 2 keynote speakers and 6 panelists, and also audience actively participated. I am not going to repeat the excellent presentations and what have been discussed afterwards by the panelists and audience. Other than commenting some, I would like to give some of my observation on this subject.

Recently I read the book "Human Beings perish from the Earth in Eighty Years" by Dr. Nishizawa Jun-ichi, celebrated physicist and Optic Fiber inventor, and Biologist Dr. Isao Ueno. There are not many books that point out the critical situation of our global environment as directly as this. It warns us of the adverse effects of global warming in detail, especially from increasing CO2 emissions, on all eco-systems and on human beings. It also points out the effects on tidal currents whose damage will lead to a malfunctioning of the ocean's ability to control the global temperature.

According to IPCC Report, as a result of global warming, it is estimated that by the end of the 21st century, temperatures will increase by 2 degrees on average, and the sea level will rise 50 centimeters. Regardless of this striking forecast, many people still think it is a story of generations ahead. Some influential politicians from developed countries express doubts as to the harmful effects of global warming, citing "lack of sufficient scientific evidence," and thus the promotion of environmental policy in their countries is delayed. To raise public awareness as to the urgency of this issue, awareness education is very much needed.

At the Rio Summit, the Framework Convention on Climate Change was signed and IPCC was established under the banner of "Sustainable Development". Each country was expected to work on issues of global warming, yet the efforts to decrease the amount of CO2 emissions in 2000 to the 1990 level have not been successful. Instead, CO2 emissions have increased in these signatory countries.

COP3 Kyoto Conference held in autumn of 1997 set goals for developed countries that by the year 2010 the level of CO2 emissions should be decreased by 8% for EU, 7% for US, and 6% for Japan. In my country Japan, people pay great attention to local environmental issues such as waste management, dioxin, air and water pollution, but to my regret the concern toward global issues is still low. Due to a sharp drop in industrial production brought by the recent economic recession in Japan, the rate of increase in CO2 emissions is somewhat diminishing. Still economic growth remains the top priority of the government as well as the private sectors. I agree with Mr. Stigson's comment that there is no trade-off between environment and economy. I insist as a politician that environment is the area of increasing opportunities for new industry and new jobs. I must add that governments have to offer the right policies, regulations and economic means, together with effective targets and action programs. In this way of thinking, we can decrease energy spending without sacrificing the economy or quality of life. In order to realize this, technological innovation and investment in facilities by governments and businesses are necessary, so that in the construction of "Junkangata Society" or Recycle-Society, efficient use of energy and resources is improved without decreasing the quality of products. This is also stressed, for example, in the book, "Factor 4" by Ernst von Weizsacker, and Amory and Hunter Lovins, namely, reducing energy spending by half, increase in quality doubled.

Currently, the population of developed countries, which accounts for only 20% of world population, uses as much as 80% of the resources of the Earth. Thus, it is understandable that developing countries insist that the most drastic controls on emission of CO2 should be incorporated into the policies of the developed countries. But such controls by only developed countries will not be enough if developing countries, especially those with large population and rapid industrialization such as India and China, do not also make efforts to reduce the negative environmental impact of their economic growth. As Mr. Stigson stated, rather than policies of "development first, environment later", it is more cost effective to incorporate environmental measures into development policies early on. In that sense, Dr. Knut Alfsen's comment that Ministry of Finance and economic policy makers should be involved in the process of environmental decision making is very important. It is from my own experience that I say the turf battle among ministries should be avoided by all means and every ministry should internalize environmental consideration into its policy making and budget requests. This certainly applies to any countries including developing countries.

Ms. Yamanaka proposed to establish a new UN environment center as well as a new research and information sharing institution in Asia, emphasizing the importance of dissemination of technology, training of specialists, development of environmental education. Whether we need a new UN organization and research institute or not, we definitely need to activate existing research institutions toward such goals.

Our neighboring country China has a population 10 times as high as Japan does, and is eager to improve its economy and standard of living. Currently the United States comes on top with a share of 23% of global CO2 emissions, but China follows it with 14%, which is almost 3 times more than the Japanese emission. If they own more cars in the future, and if industrialization continues without any remarkable advances in clean technology, emissions will reach four or five times that of Japan. This problem will also affect Japan's air and climate.

As far as global environment is concerned, there is no distinction between developed countries and developing countries. We are on the same boat. International collaboration is a must. It is very important that every country should actively join the international efforts to reduce emissions of CO2 and other global warming gases, and share responsibility by translating it into action. Research, transfer of technology and cost sharing for sustainable development through ODA and other financial mechanisms are duty and responsibility of the developed countries. Tobin Tax should also be seriously studied.

In recent years, India's economic development has been remarkable. Despite India's lack of proximity to Japan, we are paying attention to its environmental policy along with that of China. Because of this, I was pleased to hear Dr. Pachauri's speech "Directions, Innovations, and Strategies for Harnessing Action", in which he advocated ways for India to protect its environment and make efficient use of its resources. Developed countries, like Japan, could also gain from considering his proposals for energy efficiency through decentralization and market-based instruments for green choice. Moreover Dr. Pachauri pointed out that it is the responsibility of private corporations to develop innovative technology and invest in the environment. By adopting this viewpoint, Japan has been recovering from severe environmental problems brought about during its rapid economic growth after World War II.

Japan's population and land area are both one eighth those of India. The population density of the two countries is thus roughly the same, and both countries face the problem of overcrowding in large cities. Thus, India shares with Japan a need for economic growth while maintaining adequate living standards for a dense population. Like Japan, India has two great resources for achieving this goal. One is a large body of highly trained scientists and engineers. Another is the lessons that can be learned from the experiences of rapid development around the world. I strongly hope that nations, like India and Japan, can come together, find their similarities, and collaborate in their efforts to attain sustainable growth, so that people can live an energy efficient, healthy and peaceful life.

I don't have to add that War is the worst enemy for sustainable environment. I finish my remark by expressing my heartfelt appreciation to TERI and Dr. Pachauri.