My concept map covers my interpretation of how the WikiLeaks cables revealed the United States plan for the climate accord. This was brought about through global warming and a plan was needed to fight it. Global Warming brought upon the Copenhagen Accord, which benefited the United States. The United States drummed up support for this bill through the secret cables. They sent messages to poorer and more vulnerable countries promising them financial aid if they supported it. Originally the countries did not support it because they were not polluting the environment like the United States was. But they eventually succumbed to the United States and took the bribe. These countries are trying to develop and the influx of money was too great for them to pass up. The United States knew this and employed this tactic successfully. They also made threats to other countries pressing them to support the Copenhagen Accord. For example, they offered the Maldives $50 million to support their bill. They accepted because they could not turn down their offer to support their economy. The United States also made a threat to Ethiopia. It said sign the bill or the discussion ends now. If they still did not sign it, they would have been cut off from the United States and their wealth. The United States also tried digging up dirt on other countries and blackmailing them with it forcing them to support the bill. Through all of this, there are 140 countries that support or intend to support the Copenhagen Accord. The United States got what they wanted to happen with the Copenhagen Accord.

Climate change is an issue in today’s world as we learned in Module 9. There are greenhouse gases polluting the atmosphere and the path we are on might not be sustainable for future generations. Action needs to be taken against climate change and that is where the Copenhagen Accord comes into play. While I do not think the leaks should have been made public, it does shed some light on how the deal happened. There are private diplomatic meetings and conversations that I think should stay between the parties involved. One positive thing about the cables being released is the raised awareness it created. People are now more aware that action is trying to be taken to further prevent climate change. This might make some citizens more proactive in trying to limit their own greenhouse gas emissions. The cable leaks showed that the United States did not go about getting votes for their treaty in a very ethical way. It also did not act in a very trustful way by threatening countries to sign their climate bill. The United States was acting in a way where the bill only benefitted them. That approach works for other situations, but it does not work for a global problem such as climate change. I am sure there was another approach to this problem if the United States took some more time to find them. All the countries need to come together to find a resolution that works for everybody and one that will stop climate change. Until that happens, climate change will continue to be an uphill battle for years to come.