Clouds, chilly winds and widespread cynicism about the world leaders' ability to overcome hardships embrace the Group of 20 (G20) Summit which opens in London today.

A cab driver, dropping off passengers a stone's throw from ExCel, the venue of the summit, said: "I seriously doubt they can do any good, even though I hope they can."

Inside century-old buildings, which house the city's top financial institutions, government offices and universities, there is tremendous anxiety about the results the historical event can bring about.

The G20 Summit is widely regarded as the "first ever serious effort by various nations to overcome the global crisis, despite political and cultural differences".

Analysts, government officials, columnists and academics aren't hesitating to admit "it's make or break time" for the world.

No matter certain reservations, the G20 is the only major multilateral mechanism (it is still not an institution yet as it doesn't have an office) created to reflect the realities of the world, post World War II.

Compared with the UN Security Council, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the G20 has much wider participation, with 11 out of 20 members belonging to emerging market economies outside North America and Western Europe (industrialized economies also include Japan and Australia).

The most important common feature is not that the participating nations are large economies, and when combined, represent 85 percent of the world's economy.

Rather, it is that they have all been beneficiaries of an expanded global market.

It is in their interest to prevent globalization from falling apart amid the financial crisis.

If the G20 can work, to yield at least some shared principles, if not joint efforts and common standards, it can set an example for global-level collaboration among nation states in other areas.