As the UNFCCC negotiations in Lima (COP20) officially start today, this infographic sets out to explain why the global climate talks are so important for tackling climate change.

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If you like this, you should also see our general introduction Understanding COP20 in Lima, thoughts and expectations ahead of the meeting by our Head of International Policy Damian Ryan and our CEO Mark Kenber's op-ed "If we fail in Lima, we will fail in Paris".

Want to read more about COP? Over the next two weeks we are releasing pre and post-COP briefings as well as producing COP20 coverage in our news and blogs and on Twitter. Our States & Regions events in Lima can be tracked on hashtag #statesandregions.

And in case you missed it, here's a brief background to the COP20 in Lima and our our CEO Mark Kenber's op-ed "If we fail in Lima, we will fail in Paris".