Financial Transparency Coalition

The 2009 summit of G8 leaders concluded today after 3 days of meetings in L'Aquila, Italy. While it looks as though little action has emerged from the summit, the leaders have certainly altered their rhetoric in a positive direction. A number of important documents came out of the summit:

• G8 Joint Declaration: Promoting the Global Agenda
• G8 Leaders Declaration: Responsible Leadership for a Sustainable Future
• Chair's Summary

Here's a great snippet from the Responsible Leadership for a Sustainable Future document:

On the final day of the 2009, the Chair of the G8 Summit (Italy) released the attached statement which summarizes the discussions and conclusions of the summit.

The Group of Eight* (G8) summit commenced yesterday amongst the rubble of the devastated Italian town, L’Aquila, which had been crushed by the Abruzzo earthquake on April 6th. Images of the leaders from the world’s eight biggest economies convening amongst smashed buildings provide a fitting metaphor for the world’s still caving economy. Unfortunately, it seems my brilliant solution—closing my eyes tightly and violently shaking my head—has not made it all go away. Much like devastating effects of the Abruzzo earthquake, the world’s economy continues to crumble, exposing the fault lines in our global financial system, which were easy...

The G8 leaders released a joint statement entitled "Responsible Leadership for a Sustainable Future" on the first day of the G8 Summit in L'Aquila, Italy. The statement addresses many issues including climate change, the financial crisis, tax evasion, corruption, disaster relief/prevention and more.