Doha, the capital of the oil state of Qatar, might be regarded as the most appropriate host for the climate change talks that have started, given that it is a living, breathing testament to the oil and gas-guzzling modern economy.

It offers up free electricity, traffic jams of SUVs and a profusion of steel and glass high-rise buildings that have tamed the 40-to-50-degree (Celsius) heat into comfortable air-conditioned bliss.

In consequence, Qatar is the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases per person, more than twice those of the United States. But the government has no plans to take action on climate change.