On the penultimate day of COP 17, both the head of the Brazilian delegation in Durban, Minister of Environment Izabella Teixeira and the chief negotiator Ambassador Luiz Alberto Figueiredo expressed optimism for a positive outcome of the Conference.

During a press briefing in the South African city, Amb. Figueiredo spoke about the prospects of nations involved in the negotiations: "We have to act now, and we are doing that. But at the same time we have to look at the future," he said.

"We have to work now in order to have something in place not to have a gap between what we are doing until 2020 and the phase post-2020. That's what Durban will bring: this clarity about what the next steps will be in the global fight against climate change."

Minister of Environment Izabella Teixeira also expressed her optimism when asked about how united the BASIC countries are in negotiations.

"All the BASIC countries want to play together. Everybody is working hard to find a new way, not only for the Kyoto Protocol and the Green Climate Fund, but also about the next steps beyond 2020, that's the political spirit that I've met here," she said.

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