Cisco Keynote: Gore-ChambersCisco Keynote: Gore-Chambers

The big star-studded Cisco keynote, featuring Al Gore and John Chambers appearing via TelePresence, served to drive home the message that technology has a role to play in reducing carbon emissions and helping mitigate the effects of global warming. Gore offered lavish praise for the quality of the Cisco system, and he offered advice for how the world can work together to reduce greenhouse gases and curb global warming.

The big star-studded Cisco keynote, featuring Al Gore and John Chambers appearing via TelePresence, served to drive home the message that technology has a role to play in reducing carbon emissions and helping mitigate the effects of global warming. Gore offered lavish praise for the quality of the Cisco system, and he offered advice for how the world can work together to reduce greenhouse gases and curb global warming.Gore noted that "most business leaders are way ahead of political leaders" in seeking ways to deal with the climate change problem, and, calling TelePresence "spectacular," he singled it out as a technology that can reduce travel and thus curb greenhouse gas emissions.

Chambers stressed the need for leaders in government, business and non-government organizations to take the lead in building cooperative solutions to meet the challenge. He also suggested that, while video has faltered in previous years as a solution for reducing corporate travel, the time is now right. "What is different this time is there are several different transitions going on at the same time," including the maturing of the Internet and the rise of Web 2.0 technology, Chambers said.

Now, "It's about Unified Communications changing the world," Chambers said.