CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela is hosting a meeting that’s meant to be a unique chance for environmental activists from around the world to talk with senior government negotiators ahead of the next round of global climate talks.
But the United Nations-sanctioned conference has been marred by logistical mishaps. And some groups say they’re concerned the host government is using the meeting as a platform for anti-capitalist decrees.
A last-minute change in venue from the capital Caracas to Margarita Island in the Caribbean forced participants to scramble for hard-to-find flights. That led several would-be participants to drop out, including White House climate envoy Todd Stern.
A Venezuelan environmental coalition known as Red ARA said it wasn’t invited after it complained the government was imposing an ideological bias on the meetings.
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