VOA慢速英语2021 世界领导人齐聚格拉斯哥讨论气候变化

Several world leaders have said that humanity's future depends on efforts to fight climate change. They say the risk of failure could be high for countries attending the 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference, known as COP26.

一些世界领导人曾表示，人类的未来取决于应对气候变化的努力。他们表示，对于参加第26届联合国气候变化大会的国家来说，失败的风险可能很高。

Six years ago, nearly 200 countries agreed to separate plans to fight global warming in the 2015 Paris climate agreement. On Sunday, leaders will meet in Glasgow, Scotland to take the next step: Do more and do it faster.

6年前在2015年巴黎气候协定中，近200个国家同意分别制定应对全球变暖的计划。周日，各国领导人将在苏格兰格拉斯哥会面采取下一步行动：做得更多，做得更快。

Those efforts have not been easy. Except for a small drop because of the COVID-19 pandemic, carbon pollution from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas is increasing, not falling.

这些努力并不容易。除了因为新冠肺炎大流行造成的小幅下降外，煤炭、石油和天然气燃烧造成的碳污染正在增加而不是下降。

The United Nations estimated that, between now and 2030, the world will release up to 28 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases beyond the limit set in the Paris agreement.

联合国预计从现在到2030年，全球将释放多达280亿公吨的温室气体，这超出了巴黎协定设定的限额。

"Everything is at stake"

一切都岌岌可危

Many scientists say climate change is causing heat waves, flooding, lack of rain and major storms around the world. There were wildfires in Canada and Turkey, flooding in Europe and China, and record heat in Siberia and California's Death Valley.

许多科学家表示，气候变化正在全球范围内引发热浪、洪水、少雨以及大风暴。加拿大和土耳其发生了野火，欧洲和中国发生了洪水，西伯利亚和加州死亡谷出现了创纪录的高温。

Extreme weather also has led to losses of human lives and is estimated to cost the world's economy about $320 billion a year.

极端天气还造成了人类死亡，并且估计每年给世界经济造成约3200亿美元的损失。

"Everything is at stake if the leaders do not take climate action," young Ugandan climate activist¹ Vanessa Nakate said. "We cannot eat coal. We cannot drink oil, and we cannot breathe so-called natural gas."

乌干达年轻气候活动家瓦内萨·纳凯特表示：“如果全球领导人不采取气候行动，一切都将变得岌岌可危。我们不能吃煤，不能喝石油，也不能呼吸所谓的天然气。”

European Commission Vice² President Frans Timmermans said, "We are fighting for the survival of humanity." Dr. Maria Neira, director of public health and environment at the World Health Organization, added, "The unhealthy choices that are killing³ our planet are killing our people as well."

欧盟委员会副主席弗兰斯·蒂默曼斯表示：“我们是在为人类生存而战。”世卫组织公共卫生和环境部主任玛丽亚·内拉博士补充说：“这种正在毁灭地球的有害选择也正在毁灭我们人类。”

Pope Francis will not attend the COP26 meeting. But he said before Friday's meeting with American President Joe Biden, "These crises present us with the need to take decisions, radical⁴ decisions that are not always easy." The religious leader added, "...Moments of difficulty like these also present opportunities, opportunities that we must not waste."

教皇方济各不会参加第26届联合国气候变化大会。但是他在周五会见美国总统拜登前表示：“这些危机需要我们做出往往不太容易的激进决策。这样的困难时刻也给我们带来了不容错失的机遇。”

Climate change targets

气候变化目标

United Nations officials have proposed three targets for negotiations⁵ at Glasgow:

联合国官员提出了格拉斯哥的三个磋商目标：

Countries must promise to reduce carbon emissions⁷ by 45 percent by 2030 compared with 2010.

各国必须承诺在2030年前将碳排放量较2010年减少45%。

Rich countries should contribute $100 billion a year in aid to poor countries.

发达国家必须每年向贫困国家提供1000亿美元的援助。

Half of that amount must be aimed at dealing⁸ with climate change's worst effects.

其中一半援助必须用于应对气候变化的恶劣影响。

World leaders have recently admitted some goals may not be met. U.S. Climate Envoy⁹ John Kerry told The Associated Press: "There will be a gap" on emission⁶ targets. That means the amount of gasses released will not meet limits set by international negotiators.

世界领导人最近承认一些目标可能无法实现。美国气候特使约翰·克里对美联社表示，排放目标会有分歧。这意味着气体排放量将达不到国际谈判人员设定的限制。

Under the Paris agreement, nations must reconsider their earlier promises to limit carbon gasses every five years. They are to come up with plans to cut even more and do it faster. This year's meeting, which was delayed one year by the pandemic, is the first to include the required plans to set new targets.

根据巴黎协定，各国必须重新考虑他们之前做出的每5年限定碳排放的承诺。他们将提出削减更多排放并更快完成的计划。今年的会议因为大流行推迟了一年，这是首次包括设定新目标的所需计划。

In Paris, world leaders agreed to limit the warming of the Earth's atmosphere to 1.5 degrees Celsius¹⁰ since pre-industrial times. But the world has already warmed 1.1 degrees Celsius since then.

在巴黎，世界领导人同意将地球大气温度升幅限制在工业化时代前期以来的1.5摄氏度以内。但是自那时起，全球温度已经升高了1.1摄氏度。

A UN study released in August said the world will cross the 1.5-degree-Celsius mark in the 2030s. That is earlier than some past predictions. The report's scientists said warming has increased in recent years.

联合国8月份发表的一份研究称，全球温度升幅将在本世纪30年代超过1.5摄氏度的目标。这要早于过去的一些预测。该报告的科学家表示，近年来气温升幅有所提升。

It also studied five possible situations that might take place in the future. They are based on how much carbon gas emissions are cut by nations around the world. In three possible situations, worldwide average temperatures will increase by more than 2 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial times.

它还研究了未来可能发生的5种情况。这些是基于世界各国减少了多少碳排放量。在3种可能的情况下，全球平均气温将比工业化前期高出2摄氏度以上。

Small island nations in the Pacific Ocean and other poor, at-risk communities said in 2015 that a rise of 2 degrees Celsius would wipe them out.

太平洋小岛国和其它贫困面临风险的社区在2015年表示，气温上升2摄氏度将会毁灭他们。

"Our way of life is at stake," said Tina Stege, the climate representative for the Marshall Islands. "Our ability to provide our children with a safe and secure future is at stake." She added that island countries do not have higher ground to which they can move their people.

马绍尔群岛气候代表蒂娜·斯泰格表示：“我们的生活方式受到威胁。我们为子孙后代提供一个安全可靠未来的能力受到威胁。”她还表示，这些岛国没有地势较高的地方可以让人民迁移过去。

Division among countries

国家之间的分歧

In Glasgow, divisions between nations are big, and trust is a problem, say several U.N. officials and outside experts.

一些联合国官员和外部专家表示，在格拉斯哥，各国之间的分歧很大，互信也是一个问题。

Rich countries like the U.S. and European nations have historically produced the most greenhouse gases. Rich nations are now asking poor nations to cut or end the use of fossil fuels: coal, oil and natural gas. In return, they have promised – but have not given - $100 billion a year by 2020 to help developing countries switch to clean energy.

美国和欧洲等发达国家历来产生最多的温室气体。发达国家现在要求贫困国家减少或停止使用煤炭、石油和天然气这些化石燃料。作为回报，他们承诺到2020年每年提供1000亿美元帮助发展中国家转向清洁能源，但是这一承诺并未兑现。

China is the world's largest carbon emitter. The country announced a new reduction target that is not much stronger than its earlier promise. The Climate Action Tracker estimated that even if every other nation cuts emissions by 45 percent and China does not, the world's total will drop only by 30 percent.

中国是世界上最大的碳排放国。该国宣布了一项新的减排目标，但是并不比先前的承诺力度大多少。气候行动追踪机构估计，即使其它国家排放量都减少45%，而中国不这样做，那么全球排放总量也只会减少30%。

United Nations Environment Program Director Inger Andersen said China and the U.S. are very important. "We need these two powers to put aside whatever else and to show true climate leadership because this is what it will take," Andersen told the AP.

联合国环境规划署署长英格·安德森表示，中国和美国非常重要。安德森对美联社表示：“我们需要这两大强国搁置其它任何问题，展现出真正的气候领导力，因为这就是它所需要的。”

1 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

2 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

3 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

4 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

5 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

6 emission   

n.发出物，散发物；发出，散发

参考例句：

• Rigorous measures will be taken to reduce the total pollutant emission.采取严格有力措施，降低污染物排放总量。
• Finally,the way to effectively control particulate emission is pointed out.最后，指出有效降低颗粒排放的方向。

7 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

8 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

9 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

10 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。