Climate change on back burner, claims Nobel prize winner

The health of the global eco-system will re-emerge as a top priority for political leaders once the world recession has eased, a climate change expert has claimed.

According to Nobel Prize winner and head of the UN intergovernmental panel on climate change Rajendra Pachauri, the issue has been put on the back burner as decision-makers attempt to tackle the current financial crisis.

Speaking at World Congress of Metropolis conference in Sydney, Mr Pachauri said there will be "an effort to define how government and business and industry and individuals can work together to see that issues like climate change, like carving out a new energy future, can be handled effectively".

In 2007, he shared his Nobel Peace Prize with campaigner and former US vice president Al Gore, reports the International Herald Tribune.

Meanwhile, Achim Steiner, executive director of the UN Environment Programme, called for a Franklin Roosevelt-style New Deal scheme to tackle climate change, reports Reuters.