Around 9,000 delegates from around the world are in Poland for two weeks of critical UN-sponsored talks on tackling climate change.
It is anticipated that 150 environment ministers will attend the discussions, which are part of a process on finding a successor to the Kyoto Protocol.
The Kyoto Protocol is due to end in 2012, and there is now a major international push to have its successor agreed by this time next year.
The talks, which began in Poznan this morning, will give a clear indication as to whether that deadline is going to be met.
While the US negotiating delegation will be chosen by outgoing President George W Bush, there may be a significant shift in its position, due to incoming president Barak Obama.
Minister for the Environment John Gormley will attend the talks.
However, Friends of the Earth has claimed the Government is trying to dodge its responsibilities, and is seemingly indifferent to the global consequences.
