Diplomacy ditched its stuffy tie for once at a climate meeting in Belem, Brazil, where Thursday's Amazonian heat saw leaders and bureaucrats eagerly remove what is normally considered a summit fashion must.

Despite a more relaxed dress code suggested by organizers ahead of time, several heads of state and government donned full business attire as they arrived for a warm welcome from President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Lula -- himself wearing a dapper suit and collared shirt -- set the tone by forgoing his "lucky tie" in the green, yellow and blue colors of the Brazilian flag, which he wears proudly for most of his international engagements.

As temperatures topped 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) in the humid riverine city on the edge of the Amazon rainforest, many delegates s

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