As of Monday morning, many of the world's biggest polluters - including China, India and the European Union - had not done so.

I became fully aware of the environmental challenges that we face when I visited Boracay Island in the Philippines a few years ago. The amazing picturesque beaches with white sand and blue lagoons were disturbed by the over-interest of tourists like me.

Delegates at a UN climate conference in Paris approve a draft text that they hope will form the basis of an agreement to curb global carbon emissions.