"A large population and a weak economic base are the two main features of our country. The population issue is a major problem for the country's comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable development."

Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang, stressing the importance of continuing the family-planning policy and keeping a low fertility rate to ensuring economic development and people's livelihood at a September 7 meeting in Beijing

"We can't go to Copenhagen because we don't have the money."

Mohamed Nasheed, President of the Maldives. The president said that even though his country is under threat from climate change, he cannot afford to go to a summit on the issue in December

"Replacing the dollar with an artificial currency would solve some of the problems related to the potential of countries running large deficits and would help stability."

Detlef Kotte, one of the authors of a report released by the UN Conference on Trade and Development. The report said that the system of currencies and capital rules that binds the world economy is not working properly, and was largely responsible for the financial and economic crises

"Apart from massive loss of life, these attacks would have had enormous worldwide economic and political significance."

John McDowall, head of Scotland Yard's counterterrorism command, after a British jury convicted three terrorists on September 7 of plotting to blow up jets over the Atlantic with home-made liquid bombs

"The world is getting an awful lot smaller and it is getting very hard to find places that are so far off the beaten track."

Steve Backshall, a member of a team that discovered 40 previously unidentified species in the crater of Mount Bosavi in Papua New Guinea