2001 was a critical year in climate change negotiations. Despite U.S. withdrawal, 178 countries agreed upon a text that would allow developed countries to move forward with ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. The agreement elaborates the means by which an industrialized country may go about meeting the greenhouse gas emissions reduction requirements established by the Kyoto Protocol in 1997. The Kyoto Protocol represents the only serious effort by the international community to address the deleterious effects of climate change on humankind and the environment.