I write this editorial as the 16th Conference of Parties (COP) closes in the beach resort town of Cancun, Mexico in another attempt at climate negotiations. Even before the outcome was known the Conference had been mired by media cynicism and reports of diplomatic failure. There is little expectation that these climate negotiations will usher in real global cooperation, burden sharing and accountability. Following the failure of the 15th COP held in Copenhagen, December 2009 there seems to be a consistent inability for governments to find ways to move forward that bodes ill for the end of the Kyoto Protocol in 2012. Some of the squabbles are about finance. It is unclear if the US$30 billion pledged in Copenhagen to support mitigation and adaptation in the South will materialize. The recommendation of the High-level Advisory Group on Climate Change Financing is that US$100 billion must be found annually for climate actions in developing countries.We can add that dream to the rest of the long climate wish list: science-based targets, a democratically governed global climate fund, a funded adaptation framework, technology and investment cooperation and a strategy for tackling intellectual property rights and trade disputes, as well as a pro poor forestry and land use agreement, national low and zero emission reduction targets (Athanasiou, 2010). Some arehopeful that Cancunwill lead to financial transparencyof the North. Others have just given up.The Economist (2010) states upfront that ‘global action is not going to stop climate change. The world needs to look harder at how to live with it’. Its four-page Briefing elaborates why we need to adjust to difficult years ahead, where poor people will ‘adapt’ bymassmigrationand the rich people will learn to survive the unpredictable weather patterns. It uncritically comments that one group of Oxford development economists suggests that instead of aid to African farmers it would be much better if the farmers were encouraged to move to cities. From a comfortable Eurocentric standpoint, The Economist reassures us that at least in this century the Dutch will do fine, though not the Pacific Islanders. The stark message is that those countries with money and know-how will win out. Sadly though, most of the world is just not registering the importance of Cancun. Take mainstream media on the weekend before it began (27 and 28 November 2010) where climate was hardly mentioned. The headline stealer was Black Friday: the Friday after US Thanksgiving when US shopkeepers are meant to go in the black. Markets Development, 2011, 54(1), (1–4) r 2011 Society for International Development 1011-6370/11 www.sidint.net/development/