1.   NORTH-EAST Greens staged a mock earth summit at the weekend, as world leaders prepared to descend on Rio for the real thing.

2.   In June government ministers will gather in New York for a giant meeting to review progress since the earth summit.

3.   Since the last big earth summit five years ago in Rio de Janeiro, the science linking emissions created from burning fossil fuels to environmental change has improved.

4.   So were the earth summits a waste?

5.   The Kyoto accord caps two years of talks to bolster a climate change treaty signed at the first earth summit five years ago in Rio de Janeiro.

6.   The Kyoto accord caps two years of talks to bolster a climate change treaty signed at the first earth summit five years ago in Rio de Janiero.

7.   The UN plan caps two years of talks to bolster a climate change treaty signed at the first earth summit five years ago in Rio de Janiero.