Multilateral funders and development agencies have offered to finance green projects. And local Maldivian companies are starting to pioneer environmentally friendly technologies that could make them world leaders in the green economy of the future.
The global publicity around the announcement has also provided free advertising for government policies such as the part-privatization of our energy, waste and transport sectors (naturally, green investors will be given preference).
Carbon neutrality also boosts our tourism industry, as increasingly eco-conscious tourists seek out climate guilt-free destinations. In time, our economy will also be more stable as it decouples from the unpredictable price of foreign oil and relies instead on cheap, raw materials the Maldives has in abundance: the sun, sea and the wind.
The Maldives should certainly benefit from greening its economy. But it is on the world stage that I hope our environmental efforts will add most value. The Maldives' example provides ammunition to environmentalists and concerned citizens around the world. The common bureaucratic excuse - that drastic emissions cuts are unfeasible - is now a little less credible.
If a small, developing nation can go carbon neutral, what excuse can richer, industrialized countries have for refusing to do the same? By demonstrating that radical climate change action is achievable, the Maldives can act as a beacon of hope in a sea of environmental lethargy.
The Green Room is a series of opinion articles on environmental topics running weekly on the BBC News website.
2.3 Чтение высказываний по заданной в статье теме представителей различных стран. (10 минут)
Учащиеся, каждый по очереди, читают сообщения, затем совместно делают общий перевод, для того чтобы понять смысл прочитанного.
Do you agree with President Nasheed? Is one small country's effort enough to influence that of major global carbon emitters? Do the economic differences between giant and tiny nations make the Maldives' example irrelevant to larger economies? Can a shift to carbon-neutral be a profitable prospect for the globe?
Yoosuf, Maldives
President Nasheed makes a good point, in that by setting a challenging task, he would spur an economic resurgence in his island. This will add momentum to climate change efforts elsewhere, if the bigger and dominant countries do not look down upon this effort. The climate change management efforts aim at controlling and managing the change. What is better than by demonstrating that it can be done, by one and all, however small the net contribution may be?
Arun Varma, Mumbai, India
Carbon neutral? Does that mean that he will ban air flights into the Maldives too? After all, that is the largest source of Maldivian CO2 emissions.
Les J, Canada
Excellent to lead by example; of course they feel most at risk of any rise in sea levels. But many areas in UK at flood risk as well, and we need to do far more on renewable energy, energy efficiency (high speed electric trains, etc) and carbon capture. This government is just not up to the job, letting decisions take decades, we need to get on with it.
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