Before we get into the nitty gritty of international climate change negotiations, we thought we should start by explaining what the Bali conference is all about.

Let's dip into our mailbag and answer a few of your questions.

"Why is Bali important?"

There are a lot of reasons why Bali is important (and, no, we're not talking about snorkeling, kayaking or surfing). We've reached a critical tipping point in the global fight against climate change. We now know beyond any doubt that climate change is real and that it's happening now.

The world's top scientists have sounded the warning bell and they say that immediate action is needed to prevent the most severe impacts.

Because climate change is a global issue, we need to tackle it on an international level. The first coordinated effort resulted in the Kyoto Protocol, which sets out emission reduction targets for developed countries during the period 2008-2012. The first phase of the Kyoto Protocol will end in 2012. So the Bali conference will launch a process to put a new international climate change deal in place to ensure action is taken immediately after 2012 (the second phase of the Kyoto Protocol). The Bali conference is expected to launch this process.

"What can (and can't) Bali deliver?"

The main goal of the Bali conference is to get negotiations going on a new international climate change agreement. It won't actually deliver a fully negotiated and agreed climate deal but it will set the framework of the deal and get the process going.

Countries need to agree on the key areas the new agreement should cover, such as cutting emissions, adapting to climate change, technology and financing. They also need to agree on when the talks will end so that the new climate change deal can be ratified before the end of 2012.

"What is Canada’s position going into Bali?"

Canada is claiming that it is a bridge between the U.S. (which refuses to take federal action on climate change) and the EU (which is ambitiously trying to tackle climate change). While Prime Minister Stephen Harper likes to talk about climate change and his commitment to take action in Canada, his rhetoric does not match reality.

Canada has not set any mandatory targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions, nor has it taken any real action to cut those emissions. (Yes, the Suzuki Foundation is working on turning this around but that’s a whole other blog post.)