What Earth in 2050 could look like - Shannon Odell

翻译人员: Tong PL 校对人员: suya f.

While we’re already feeling the devastating effects

尽管我们已经感受到了

of human-caused climate change,

人为气候变化毁灭性的影响

governments continue to fall short on making and executing emissions pledges

但政府仍然未能 做出和执行有助于遏制

that would help thwart further warming.

进一步暖化的排放量承诺。

So, what will our world look like in the next 30 to 80 years,

那么，如果我们继续目前的道路，

未来 30 到 80 年 我们的世界会是什么样子呢？

if we continue on the current path?

While it’s impossible to know exactly how the next decade will unfold,

尽管不可能确切知道 未来十年将是如何展开，

scientists and climate experts have made projections,

但科学家和气候专家 已经根据当前的状况

factoring in the current state of affairs.

做出了预测。

This future we’re about to describe is bleak,

我们即将描述的这个未来是黯淡的，

but remember there’s still time to ensure it doesn’t become our reality.

但请记住，我们还有时间来确保 它不会成为我们的现实。

It’s 2050.

现在是 2050 年。

We’ve blown past the 1.5 degree target that world leaders promised to stick to.

我们已经突破了世界领导人们 承诺要坚持的 1.5 度目标。

The Earth has warmed 2 degrees since the 1800s,

自 1800 年代世界首次开始 大规模燃烧化石燃料以来，

when the world first started burning fossil fuels in mass scale.

地球已经升温了 2 度。

Reports on heatwaves and wildfires regularly fill the evening news.

晚间新闻中经常有 关于热浪和野火的报道。

Summer days exceed 40 degrees in London and 45 degrees in Delhi,

伦敦的夏日超过 40 度， 德里的夏日超过 45 度，

as extreme heat waves are now 8 to 9 times more common.

因在现在极端热浪的 普遍程度增加了 8 到 9 倍。

These high temperatures prompt widespread blackouts,

这些高温引发了 大规模的停电，

as power grids struggle to keep up with the energy demands

因为电网难以满足 足够冷却住宅

needed to properly cool homes.

所需的能源。

Ambulance sirens blare through the night,

救护车警报器彻夜响起，

carrying patients suffering from heatstroke, dehydration, and exhaustion.

载着患有中暑、 脱水和疲劳的患者。

The southwestern United States, southern Africa, and eastern Australia

美国西南部、非洲南部和 澳大利亚东部

experience longer, more frequent, and more severe droughts.

经历了更长、更频繁、 更严重的干旱。

Meanwhile, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Japan

同时，菲律宾、 印度尼西亚和日本

face more frequent heavy rainfall

面临更频繁的强降雨，

as rising temperatures cause water to evaporate faster,

因为气温上升导致水 更快地蒸发，

and trap more water in the atmosphere.

并将更多的水滞留在大气中。

As the weather becomes more erratic,

随着天气变得越来越不稳定，

some communities are unable to keep pace with rebuilding

一些社区无法跟上步伐以重建

what’s constantly destroyed.

那些不断被毁坏的事物。

Many move to cities,

许多人移居城市，

where they face housing shortages and a lack of jobs.

在那里他们面临住房短缺 和缺乏就业机会。

A resource squeeze is felt in newborn intensive care wards,

新生儿重症监护病房 感受到资源紧张

as the rising temperature and air pollution

因为温度升高 和空气污染

cause higher rates of premature and underweight births.

导致更高的早产率和 体重不足率。

More children develop asthma and respiratory disease,

越来越多的儿童 患上哮喘和呼吸道疾病，

and rates balloon in communities regularly exposed to forest fire smoke.

而那些经常暴露于森林火灾 烟雾的社区的患病率也激增。

The global emissions added to the atmosphere each year

由于政府的行动， 每年增加到大气中的全球排放量

finally start to level off, thanks to government action,

终于开始趋于平稳，

but it’s decades too late.

但为时已晚。

We fail to reach net zero in time.

我们未能及时达到净零排放量。

As a result, by 2100 the Earth has warmed another 0.5 to 1.5 degrees.

结果，到 2100 年， 地球又升温了 0.5 至 1.5 度。

Over half of our remaining glaciers have melted.

我们剩下的冰川 有一半以上已经融化。

As the sea heats up, its volume increases due to thermal expansion.

随着海洋的升温， 其体积由于热膨胀而增加。

Together, this elevates sea level by well over a meter.

总而言之，这使海平面 上升了一米以上。

Entire nations, like the Marshall Islands and Tuvalu, are uninhabitable

整个国家，例如马绍尔群岛 和图瓦卢，都无法居住，

as large swaths of their islands are submerged.

因为它们的大片岛屿都被淹没了。

Some islands, like the Maldives,

一些岛屿，比如马尔代夫，

spend billions building interconnected rafts

花费数十亿美元建造 相互连接的木筏，

that house apartments, schools, and restaurants

这些木筏上建有公寓、 学校和餐厅

that float above its drowned cities.

漂浮在被淹没的城市之上。

Resettled climate migrants in Jakarta, Mumbai, and Lagos

在雅加达、孟买和拉各斯 重新定居的气候移民

are forced to abandon their homes once again,

被迫再次放弃他们的家园

as rising tides and extreme storms flood buildings and crumble infrastructure.

因为涨潮和极端的风暴 淹没建筑物并摧毁了基础设施

Overall, 250 million people are displaced.

总体而言，有 2.5 亿人流离失所。

Some affluent cities like New York and Shanghai attempt to adapt,

一些富裕的城市，例如纽约 和上海，试图进行调整，

elevating buildings and roadways.

抬高建筑物和道路。

Ten-meter-tall seawalls line the cities’ coasts.

十米高的海堤沿着城市的海岸线。

Children learn about extinct sea life which once inhabited the ocean’s reefs,

孩子们了解着那些曾经居住 在海洋珊瑚礁中已灭绝的海洋生物，

all of which have vanished thanks to rising surface water temperatures.

归功于表面水温的上升， 这些生物都消失了。

Grocery prices skyrocket,

随着食品和水资源短缺

as food and water scarcity touch all communities.

触及所有社区，杂货价格飞涨。

Fruits and products long grown in the tropics and subtropics

长期在热带和亚热带地区 种植的水果和产品

rarely show up on shelves,

很少出现在货架上，

as intense heat waves paired with increasing humidity

因为强烈的热浪加上湿度的增加

make it deadly for farmers to work outdoors.

使农民在户外工作变得致命。

Unpredictable heatwaves, droughts, and floods

不可预测的 热浪、干旱和洪水

cripple small-scale farmers in Africa, Asia, and South America,

使非洲、亚洲和南美的小农户陷入瘫痪，

who previously produced one-third of the world’s food.

他们以前生产的粮食 占世界粮食的三分之一。

Hundreds of millions of people are pushed into hunger and famine.

数亿人陷入饥饿和饥荒。

Climate predictions can feel overwhelming and terrifying.

气候预测可能会 让人感到不知所措和恐惧。

Yet many of the experts responsible for these assessments remain optimistic.

然而，许多负责这些评估的专家 仍然持乐观态度。

Since countries have first begun taking steps to lower their emissions,

自各国首次开始采取措施 降低排放量以来，

warming projections have shifted downwards.

全球变暖的预测已向下调整。

In less than a decade, we’ve reduced our projected emission rates

在不到十年的时间里， 我们降低了我们预计的排放率，

so that we’re no longer on track to hit nearly 4 degrees of warming.

因此，我们不再朝着 接近 4 度的升温目标前进。

Policies that invest in renewable energy sources,

投资可再生能源、

cut fossil fuel production, support electric transportation,

削减化石燃料产量、 支持电力交通、

protect our forests, and regulate industry

保护我们的森林 和监管工业的政策

can help mitigate the worst effects of climate change.

可以帮助减轻气候变化的最坏影响。

But climate experts have also stressed that current policies and pledges

但是气候专家也强调， 目前的政策和承诺

don’t go far enough— in speed or scale.

在速度或规模上都走得不够远。

Enacting real change will require bold solutions,

实现真正的变革 需要大胆的解决方案、

innovations, and collective action.

创新和集体行动。

There’s still time to rewrite our future, and every tenth of a degree counts.

我们仍有时间重新书写我们的未来， 且每一度的温度变化都至关重要.