How we can turn the tide on climate | Christiana Figueres and Chris Anderson

340,702 views ・ 2019-12-12

TED


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[Citizens of the world]
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[We face a global crisis of unprecedented scale]
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[Please stand by for a message from ... ]
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[the Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres]
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The climate emergency is the defining crisis of our time.
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We are in a race against time, and we are losing.
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There is a growing tide of impatience, especially among young people,
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with global inaction.
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We need more ambition from all:
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governments, cities, businesses, investors and people everywhere.
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So I'm pleased you are launching TED Countdown.
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Your influence and ideas can help accelerate momentum
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for a carbon-neutral world by 2050.
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That is the only way to avert the worst impacts of global heating.
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We have the tools, the science and the resources.
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Let us now get into this race with political will and energy.
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To do anything less will be a betrayal of our entire human family
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and generations to come.
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Thank you.
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Announcer: And now, please welcome
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one of the architects of the Paris Climate Agreement
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Christiana Figueres
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and the head of TED, Chris Anderson.
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(Applause)
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Chris Anderson: Welcome, welcome.
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Something remarkable is going to happen in the next hour.
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The world's single most alarming challenge,
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which looks something like this ...
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is about to go head-to-head
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with some of the world's most amazing minds
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and courageous hearts,
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which look something like you.
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The extraordinary audience we have here in New York and around the world.
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Christiana, it's quite the crowd we get to hang out with this morning.
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Christiana Figueres: It sure is, no kidding.
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It's a good thing that everyone is here together,
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because actually, this initiative that we're just about to launch
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needs everyone to participate.
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And here it is.
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Countdown.
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CA: Countdown is a global initiative to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
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It's seeking bold solutions in five big areas,
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imagining what could be achieved
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if different groups broke out of their silos and acted together.
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Starting today, you can go to countdown.ted.com
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and sign up to join the Countdown.
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Early in 2020,
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we'll be sharing plans on how you can connect
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with others in your company, your city or your school
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to engage in this issue.
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It's all leading up to global gatherings
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on 10.10.2020.
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Everyone in the world is invited to participate.
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CF: And so that's why,
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although I've been part of many initiatives along the years,
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I'm really excited about this one.
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Because Countdown is an invitation to everyone, everyone,
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to play their part in saving our planet
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and creating an exciting future.
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Politicians and citizens,
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CEOs and their customers,
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their employees, their investors,
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old and young,
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north and south.
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CA: (Laughs) I see what you did there.
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(Laughter)
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But look, our goal is not to plunge in
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with something new that is competitive
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with the amazing initiatives already out there.
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No.
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It's to identify the best solutions that have already been worked on,
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to cross-fertilize them, to amplify them
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and then activate them
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by bringing together these different groups.
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CF: And if that happens,
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we believe there is a way out of the climate crisis.
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That's what we want to facilitate.
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But now, Chris, question:
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Why are you and TED interested in participating
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and actually activating the climate agenda,
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when I thought you were all about spreading ideas?
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CA: Well, indeed, that has been our focused mission for the last 15 years,
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Ideas Worth Spreading.
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But last summer,
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we concluded that the urgency of some issues,
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and especially climate,
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demanded that we try to do more than just spread ideas,
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that we actually try to activate them.
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Now, we're just a relatively small nonprofit --
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that would not amount to anything if we fail to bring other people on board.
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But the amazing thing is that that has happened.
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Everyone we've spoken to about this has got excited about participating.
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And one of the key moments, frankly, was when you came on board, Christiana.
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I mean, you were key to the Paris Agreement.
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And the world was stunned at the consensus that emerged there.
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What was the key to creating that consensus?
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CF: I would say it was to really challenge and change people's assumption
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about what is possible if we set a shared intention
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and then collectively pursue it and achieve it.
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So our mantra then, and continues to be:
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"Impossible is not a fact,
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it's an attitude."
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In fact, only an attitude,
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and that is something we can change.
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CA: Well, that mantra, certainly, we're going to have to hold onto
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in the months ahead,
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because the scientific consensus is actually worsening.
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For a quick report from the front lines,
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here's the head of the thousands of scientists
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who make up the IPCC, Dr. Hoesung Lee.
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(Video) Hoesung Lee: We recently released three special reports
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that show the damage and risks of past and future climate change.
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They also show that stabilizing climate
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would imply a drastic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions
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in the near term.
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Society will have to go through unprecedented changes
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to meet this goal.
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Even limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius
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will bring more extreme weather,
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rising sea levels
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and water shortages in some regions,
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and threats to food security and biodiversity.
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Higher temperature will bring more of these damages,
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threatening lives and livelihoods
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of millions of people all around the world.
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CA: We're lucky to have with us another world-leading scientist,
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Johan Rockström here.
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He was responsible for creating the Planetary Boundaries framework.
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Johan, how serious is our situation?
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(Video) Johan Rockström: Last week, we released in "Nature"
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the 10-year update of the risk of crossing tipping points,
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irreversible tipping points, in the Earth system.
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We know 15 such tipping points,
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including the Greenland and West Antarctic ice shelf,
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and the permafrost in the Siberian tundra, for example,
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and we today have observational evidence,
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I mean, empirical evidence,
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that nine of the 15 have woken up and are on the move.
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We haven't crossed the tipping point yet,
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the window is still open,
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but they are warning us that now is the time to truly move,
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because the moment we cross them,
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like, for example, approaching a tipping point in the Amazon rain forest,
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we would risk losing the battle,
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because the planet will be taking over its self-reinforced warming.
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So that is why this initiative is so incredibly important.
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Let's go.
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CA: Well said.
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(Applause)
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So, both are very clear there that this agenda of cutting emissions
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is absolutely crucial.
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How has that been going?
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CF: Not very well, because despite what we know,
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despite everything that science has told us,
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despite everything that we have done,
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including adopting the Paris Agreement,
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we've actually been increasing greenhouse gases consistently
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over the past few decades,
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to the point where we're now at 55 gigatons
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of carbon dioxide equivalent
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that we are collectively, as humanity, emitting every year.
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And as we have heard, we have one path,
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there is one path that we have to follow, and that is:
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Start now to decrease emissions,
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instead of going up, go down --
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reverse the trend, bend the curve.
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Reduce emissions, starting in 2020,
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to the point where we will be at one half the current level of emissions by 2030,
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and then continue decreasing them, until we are at net zero by 2050.
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It's the only path that we can accept.
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CA: How do you even begin to start tackling a goal as daunting as that?
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CF: Well, we could starting by breaking
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the simple, yet daunting, challenge
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into its constituent pieces,
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five main areas.
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CA: And so these five together are actually all huge,
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and if we can find compelling solutions in each of them,
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they would actually add up to an action plan
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that matches the scale of the problem.
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Well, here are the five.
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CF: Power.
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How rapidly can we move to 100 percent clean energy?
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CA: The built environment.
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How can we re-engineer the stuff that surrounds us?
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CF: Transport.
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How do we transform the ways we move -- ourselves and goods?
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CA: Food.
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How can we spark a worldwide shift to healthier food systems?
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CF: And certainly, nature.
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How extensively can we re-green the earth?
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Now, it's worth noting that the answers to these questions
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and the measures that we would undertake
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don't just reduce net emissions --
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they do that, certainly, together, to zero --
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but they also point the way to a future
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that is much better and genuinely exciting.
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So, think about cool new forms of transport,
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clean air, healthier food, beautiful forests
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and oceans bursting with life.
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So, you know, solving the climate crisis
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isn't about sacrificing and settling for a mediocre future,
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it's about the exact opposite.
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It's about co-creating a much better future for all of us.
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CA: So how do we tackle these questions?
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(Laughter)
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CA: Let's take this question here and think about this.
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How extensively can we re-green the earth?
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I mean, there are obviously many responses to this question,
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many proposals.
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It's fundamentally about,
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"How do we increase the amount of sustainable photosynthesis
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on planet Earth."
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Photosynthesis sequesters carbon.
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There could be proposals around giant kelp forests or seagrass,
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or about forms of plants that have deeper roots
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and can sequester across the planet.
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But suppose a major proposal that came out was about reforestation.
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A massive, global reforestation campaign.
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I mean, a single organization, no matter how big,
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cannot take that on.
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The key is for everyone to join forces,
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for governments (with zoning),
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businesses to invest,
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investors to do that investing,
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environmental groups and philanthropists who support them,
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and just a massive movement among citizens everywhere,
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transforming their lawns, their cities, their neighborhoods,
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going on trips together.
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That is where, suddenly, you can dream about something really big.
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CF: So can we test that theory?
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Because we are fortunate to have with us today
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someone who grew up inside a tree-planting movement,
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probably the most well-recognized tree-planting movement.
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And she is the daughter of the Nobel Prize winner
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Wangari Maathai,
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and she heads up the Wangari Maathai Foundation today.
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So can we invite our very dear friend Wanjira Mathai?
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(Applause)
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(Video) Wanjira Mathai: Thank you very much,
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Christiana and Chris, for doing this.
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Trees have been, indeed, a part of my life for as long as I can remember,
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but we also know that for centuries,
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trees and forests have cushioned us against the harsh impacts
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of climate variation
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for very many years.
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In my lifetime, my mother,
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through the Green Belt Movement, as you mentioned,
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inspired the planting of 50 million trees and counting
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through the work of the Green Belt Movement, one organization.
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But the world now needs us
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to plant 100 times more trees than we did then.
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And the only way to do that is for all of us to come together --
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cities, citizens, governments, companies, environmental organizations --
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and we must believe, therefore,
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in the capacity for each of us to be potent agents of change.
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And that together, we are a force.
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And I hope you will all join us.
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(Applause)
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CF: So together we are a force.
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I think Wanjira really hits it right there on the head,
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because it's all about collaborating
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across a pretty broad spectrum of people.
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And happily, there are representatives from all of those groups here today.
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And we will be inviting you toward further engagement.
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But we wanted today to introduce you to a couple of those people,
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speaking from their own perspective.
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So we would like to start with the voice of a politician.
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We are incredibly honored to have with us today
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the former prime minister of Bhutan,
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and I will have you know that Bhutan is the only country in the world
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that actually absorbs more carbon than what it emits.
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Our good friend, Tshering Tobgay.
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(Applause)
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Tshering Tobgay: My country is typical of the global south,
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in that we have not caused this climate-change crisis.
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Indeed, we are blessed
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with lush forests and many bountiful rivers
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that have enabled my country, Bhutan, to remain carbon-negative.
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And yet, climate change threatens to destroy our forests.
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And to turn those very rivers
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into terrible dangers for our people,
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as the Himalayan glaciers melt and threaten both near-term flooding
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and the longer-term loss of our natural water reserves.
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So, I'm proud to join
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this Countdown initiative
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and work with all of you and with you, and with you,
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(Laughter)
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constructively, to find solutions that are both powerful and just.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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CA: Thank you.
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(Applause)
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CA: Business, of course, has a crucial role to play,
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and so do those who control the world's vast pools of investment capital.
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I was pleased to make the acquaintance recently
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of the chief investment officer
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of Japan's 1.6-trillion-dollar government pension fund.
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It's actually the world's largest pension fund.
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15:33
He's willing and interested to come with us on this journey
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and to bring others with him.
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So, somewhere is, I believe, Hiro.
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Hiro Mizuno.
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And you're live. Welcome, Hiro.
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(Video) Hiro Mizuno: Great.
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Thanks, Chris and Christiana, and the staff of TED,
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for making this possible.
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As a person in charge of the largest pension fund in the world
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15:58
and responsible for securing pension benefits for multiple generations,
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it is a hugely important issue, how to manage climate risk.
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16:07
We recently analyzed our global portfolio,
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16:10
how it's aligned with the Paris Agreement.
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16:13
It was diagnosed,
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our portfolio is on the path for more than three degrees.
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16:18
Far away from the Paris Agreement goals.
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16:21
Our portfolio is not only sizable
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16:24
but also one of the most globally diversified portfolios.
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16:28
So that means, the world is on that path.
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16:31
I'm tired of hearing the same comment repeatedly
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from our portfolio companies and, obviously, investment professionals:
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16:39
"We are realistic."
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Sorry, but being "realistic" is no longer an option.
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16:45
We are fully aware of our responsibility as the world's largest asset owner
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to inspire changes in the capital market.
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16:53
We will be actively engaging with all actors in the capital market
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to move the needle.
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I look forward to participating in this crucial dialogue with you all.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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CF: I'm sure all of you know that throughout the past 12 to 18 months,
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what has really been new and powerful and exciting
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17:16
is the amazing voices of so many young people,
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millions of young people who are out there on the streets,
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17:22
with anger, with outrage, with despair,
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17:24
and also, asking us to do our thing.
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17:28
And they have been inspired by Greta Thunberg
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17:30
but by so many other fantastic young people
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17:34
in almost every country of the world.
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And today, we are delighted to have four young activists
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come join us today.
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(Applause)
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(Cheers)
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(Applause)
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Alexandria Villaseñor: This Friday,
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I'll have been on climate strike for 52 weeks.
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18:00
That's an entire year.
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18:02
During that time,
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I found that many people don't know about climate change
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18:06
or how serious the climate crisis is.
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18:08
So I founded Earth Uprising International
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18:11
to teach young people about climate change,
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18:14
because when they know the science and the impacts,
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18:17
they want to take action.
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18:19
Being an activist means making change happen.
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18:23
Jamie Margolin: I became a climate activist
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18:25
because my life depends on it.
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18:26
I'm applying to colleges right now,
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18:28
trying to plan for my future.
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18:30
There will be nothing to look forward to
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18:32
if we don't take urgent action to stop the climate crisis now.
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18:35
I started the youth climate justice movement called Zero Hour back in 2017,
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18:40
because this is zero hour to act on climate change.
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18:44
We have no more time.
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18:45
It became clear to me
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18:47
that our leaders were not going to take real action
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unless the people stood up and demanded it,
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so that's exactly what we did.
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18:53
Natalie Sweet: I became a climate-justice activist
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18:56
because if I don't fight for the rights of the people today,
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18:59
and for the people in the future,
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19:01
who will?
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19:02
Xiye Bastida: I became a climate justice activist
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19:04
when I realized that the climate crisis impacts marginalized communities the most,
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19:09
including my town in Mexico.
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19:11
I strike with Fridays for Future
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every Friday,
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19:14
because our movement is not about gaining momentum
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19:17
but about igniting cultural change.
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19:20
But the fact that thousands of students strike for climate
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19:24
means that we are already implementing climate justice
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19:27
into every aspect of our lives,
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19:29
which is already redefining the world.
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19:32
JM: Over the course of our lifetimes,
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19:34
we've seen the Earth deteriorate at a rapid speed
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19:37
and groups of people traumatized and displaced
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19:39
by an ever-increasing number of natural disasters.
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19:42
In 2030, I'll be 28 years old.
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19:46
AV: I'll be 24 years old.
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19:48
XB: I will be 27.
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19:50
NS: I'll be 26.
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19:51
We want to be able to hand the planet over to our children
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19:54
and our children's children,
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19:56
just like many of you have been able to do.
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19:59
AV: So unless everyone --
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governments, companies, schools, scientists and citizens --
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20:05
make a united commitment to reversing the damage that we've caused,
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20:10
it will be too late.
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20:13
XB: We are not only asking you to take care of our future,
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20:16
we are also asking you to take care of our past.
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20:20
Indigenous people have been taking care of the Earth for thousands of years,
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20:25
which is why indigenous philosophy is crucial
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20:28
when implementing climate action.
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20:32
JM: This climate crisis can feel like an impossible thing to fix.
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20:36
But it's not.
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20:37
And it can't be,
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20:38
because failure is simply not an option.
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20:40
Failure means losing everything we love
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20:42
and everything that matters.
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20:44
So many of us are already working to save the future of our world,
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3381
20:47
but it can't just be on the next generation to fix.
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20:50
This is too much of a burden to just put on young people's shoulders.
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20:54
It is time for you to go all hands on deck
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20:57
and do everything within your power to save everything before it's too late.
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21:02
Are you with us?
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21:04
Audience: Yes.
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21:05
(Applause and cheers)
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21:12
(Applause)
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21:19
CA: Thank you. Thank you, thank you.
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21:21
And then, of course,
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21:22
there's a crucial role to be played by the world's storytellers,
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21:26
and those with influence on social media platforms.
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21:30
Each of the following has expressed excitement
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21:32
to be part of this project.
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21:34
They've lent us their names and support.
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21:36
We have some of them here today.
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21:37
Thank you so much for being here.
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21:40
And let's hear from one of them, actually.
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21:42
Jimmy Kimmel: Hi, I'm Jimmy Kimmel,
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21:44
and I was asked to explain why I'm passionate about climate change.
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21:47
And the reason I'm passionate about climate change
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21:50
is the same reason people who are drowning are passionate about lifeguards.
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4944
21:55
I care about this planet, because I live on it.
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3033
21:58
I don't want to move to Mars,
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1524
21:59
Mars seems terrible.
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1293
22:01
I want my kids and their kids to be able to live on Earth,
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3524
22:04
with air they can breathe and water they can drink.
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2793
22:07
That's why I care about climate change.
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2706
22:10
And also, I have a crush on Leonardo DiCaprio.
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2691
22:13
(Applause)
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2722
22:15
CF: So with all these people coming together,
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22:18
we have an opportunity to explore a new space of possibility
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22:22
for solutions based on working together,
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22:25
challenging each other
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22:27
and inspiring one another.
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22:29
So in October next year,
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22:31
we will be inviting more or less 1,000 people
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22:35
from different constituencies to meet in Bergen, Norway
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22:39
to align on specific answers to our five big questions.
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5134
22:45
CA: It will certainly be an epic event.
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2600
22:48
But even more significant than what happens in Norway
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2508
22:51
is what happens elsewhere in the world.
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2841
22:53
Because on the final day of that conference,
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22:55
we're planning a major activation of our global TEDx community.
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4619
23:01
TEDx allows initiatives to organize local events,
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3901
23:05
and there are now 4,000 such events annually.
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23:08
Here's what they look like.
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23:12
They take place in more than 200 different countries,
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23:15
generate more than a billion views annually on YouTube.
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23:18
We're expecting to see events in hundreds of cities.
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23:21
We'll be connecting our TEDx organizers
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23:23
with city mayors committed to a clean future for their cities.
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23:27
This is the key to this.
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23:29
It's this connection between the powerful,
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23:31
who usually own the conversation,
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2889
23:34
and millions of people around the world.
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1936
23:35
Because of the zeitgeist shift that's happened in the last year or two,
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23:39
suddenly, ignition can happen here,
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23:42
because there's enough critical groundswell.
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23:44
If we can give people visibility of each other,
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23:46
connection to each other,
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23:47
let's dream a little here,
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23:49
and give each other permission to dream.
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23:51
CF: So our goal here is to build connections
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23:54
with and among all of the other organizations that are working on climate.
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23:59
For example,
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24:00
the Solutions Project is a wonderful initiative
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2332
24:02
founded by Mark Ruffalo and Don Cheadle.
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3061
24:06
And let's hear from some of the leaders that they have supported.
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24:10
CA: Welcome, you're live.
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24:11
(Laughter)
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24:13
(Video) Wahleah Johns: Hi, my name is Wahleah Johns,
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3738
24:16
I'm with Native Renewables,
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1723
24:18
and we are working to provide solar power for tribes
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24:24
throughout the world.
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24:25
We have over 15,000 Native American families
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24:29
that don't have access to electricity,
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24:32
and we are working to provide solar plus battery storage for these families
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24:37
in the United States
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24:38
that don't have access to electricity.
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24:40
And they are located on my reservation,
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24:43
the Navajo Nation.
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24:45
Anna Lappé: Hi, everyone,
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24:46
I am Anna Lappé with Real Food Media,
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2793
24:49
and we work to uplift the stories of farmers and ranchers
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24:54
as a key solution to the climate crisis.
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2873
24:56
The global food system right now is a huge contributor to this crisis,
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25:00
but it doesn't have to be.
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25:02
Farmers and ranchers we really see
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25:03
as on the front lines of being part of solving the crisis.
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25:07
So we try to share the stories of the millions of farmers
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25:11
from Andhra Pradesh, India to the highlands of Oaxaca
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25:15
that are using regenerative agriculture to build healthy, carbon-rich soil,
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25:20
grow good food
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25:22
and foster the kind of resilient communities that we need.
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25:27
Rahwa Ghirmatzion: Hello from PUSH Buffalo -- my name is Rahwa --
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3129
25:30
where every day, residents are visioning, planning and designing
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25:34
an equitable, holistic and sacred neighborhood,
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3103
25:38
like where I'm phoning in from, School 77,
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3421
25:41
a renovated vacant school building
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2269
25:43
that has the first 100 percent affordable community solar array
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4818
25:48
in New York state
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25:49
installed by local residents.
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25:51
It's also serving 30 affordable senior apartments
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3619
25:55
and a mix of intergenerational spaces
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25:58
that serves as a community hub,
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26:00
where we're practicing new economy strategies
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26:03
towards a livable planet.
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26:06
CF: Thank you.
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26:07
CA: Bravo.
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26:08
(Applause)
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26:11
CA: It's so great.
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1198
26:12
(Applause)
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26:13
CF: So you see, this is about everyone.
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26:15
It's about cities,
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26:16
it's about grassroots organizations,
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26:19
but it's also, of course, about business.
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26:21
And so we're inviting all companies --
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26:24
underlined "all" --
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26:26
to join this initiative,
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26:27
to engage with your employees on how you can best protect the planet
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26:32
and your future, at the same time.
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26:36
So early next year, we'll be sharing a toolkit
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26:39
that can guide companies
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26:41
toward moving quickly towards science-based targets,
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26:45
which gets them then to net zero emissions
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26:49
by 2050 at the latest.
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26:53
CA: So think about this,
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26:54
because as an individual,
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26:56
many individuals feel powerless on this issue.
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27:00
But if you were to team up with others in your company,
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27:05
you might be amazed at how much power you actually have.
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27:08
Almost all emissions come from a company somewhere on the planet.
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5278
27:13
And the thing is, many CEOs today
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27:16
are actually eager to help solve the problem.
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27:19
We just heard this morning from Anand Mahindra,
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27:24
who heads India's biggest business group,
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27:26
that he is personally committed on this issue
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27:28
and wants to be part of this journey with us --
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27:31
he's a supporter of Countdown.
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27:33
CEOs will be able to move much faster
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27:36
if there's a group of employees there to brainstorm with, to support them,
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6252
27:42
to keep that sort of sense of urgency on the topic.
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27:47
Our website will help you connect with others in your company
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3762
27:51
and give you guidance on smart questions to ask,
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3047
27:54
initiatives to suggest,
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1937
27:56
because if companies can be persuaded to do the right thing,
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28:00
suddenly, this problem seems to become solvable.
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28:05
CF: So all of these efforts are building toward one fantastic day:
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5305
28:10
Saturday, October 10, 2020 --
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28:13
that is, "10.10.2020." -- easy to remember --
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28:18
when this fantastic gathering will take place around the world.
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3849
28:23
And we hope to have, by then,
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28:25
thrilling news of the report of the very specific solutions
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28:29
that nations, cities, companies, citizens
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28:33
are actually already collaborating on by then.
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28:37
It's a day when every citizen of the planet
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28:40
is invited to participate.
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28:42
Your one ticket of entrance is you are a citizen of the planet.
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28:46
CA: Key to the success of the event is for this to happen at scale.
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28:51
We want to make it easy for anyone and everyone
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28:54
to find out about the initiative and to play an active part in it.
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3332
28:57
But how do you do that?
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28:59
You know, the world's a noisy place.
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29:01
I mean, the TED platform can help a bit, maybe,
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29:03
but there's a much bigger content platform out there.
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29:07
It's called YouTube.
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29:10
And we're delighted to be working with them on this endeavor.
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29:13
We'll be inviting many of their top creators
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29:16
to be part of Countdown.
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29:19
Collectively, they could reach an audience in the many millions.
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29:22
In fact, let's meet one of them,
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29:23
Dr. Joe Hanson of "Hot Mess,"
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1969
29:25
a new web series about the impact of climate change on all of us.
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29:31
(Video) My name's Joe Hanson,
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1976
29:33
and I am a YouTube educator.
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And you can count me in.
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29:36
I work with tomorrow's scientists, inventors and leaders,
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29:40
and they deserve to know the truth of what the science says,
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29:43
so that they can help us invent a better future for everyone.
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29:49
CA: Imagine that multiplied by many others --
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29:51
it's very, very exciting, honestly.
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29:54
CF: And of course, when it comes to spreading the word,
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29:57
every one of you in this room can actually play your part.
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30:02
So if you have any way of reaching anyone
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30:05
who is concerned about building a better future --
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30:08
and that should be every single one of us --
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30:11
please, invite them to join Countdown.
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30:14
CA: There's one more card up our sleeve.
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30:16
We're excited to unveil a global media campaign.
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30:20
This is a campaign with a difference.
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2039
30:22
Just as TEDx exploded
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2127
30:24
by being allowed to grow as a grassroots phenomenon,
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3524
30:28
this campaign is designed to be co-opted everywhere on the planet.
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5201
30:34
If you happen to own a billboard company,
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2777
30:37
or a TV station, or a radio station,
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2062
30:39
or a website,
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1460
30:40
or a social media account,
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3150
30:43
we invite all of you to take the images you're about to see
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3287
30:47
and to just spread them far and wide.
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2714
30:50
Our website will make this easy.
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30:52
We actually plan to translate them into many languages,
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2587
30:54
courtesy of our volunteer army of more than 20,000 translators worldwide.
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4905
30:59
Some of them are with us here.
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1444
31:01
If you're a TED translator, would you wave, please?
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2933
31:05
CF: There we go.
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1162
31:06
(Applause)
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2138
31:08
CA: Your work carries powerful ideas to every corner of the earth.
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3166
31:12
We're so proud of you, so grateful to you.
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2238
31:14
So this campaign's designed to grab attention
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3349
31:17
and to communicate, yes, urgency
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31:20
but also a little smidgen of hope.
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31:23
We think it might be that combination is what is needed to really drive action.
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4523
31:27
We'd love you to let us know what you think of these.
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4056
31:31
CF: Right now.
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1155
31:32
[Choose your future.]
623
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1322
31:34
(Applause)
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3183
31:37
[Turn fear into action Join the countdown.]
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2013
31:39
(Applause)
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3167
31:43
[Action inspires action
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1209
31:44
Join the countdown. The Earth will thank you.]
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2254
31:46
(Applause)
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1151
31:47
[10.10.2020 Climate's Day of Destiny. You're invited.]
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2579
31:50
CF: Remember the date.
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1389
31:51
[Mass destruction. No biggie. (If we prevent it.)]
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2366
31:54
(Applause)
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1594
31:55
[Giant asteroid heading our way The common enemy that can unite us.]
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3269
31:59
(Applause)
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2629
32:02
[We love natural disasters anyway -- said no one ever.
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2596
32:04
So why are we causing them?]
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32:06
(Applause)
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1507
32:08
[Relax, there's nothing you can do about the climate
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2507
32:10
Unless you work for a company. Or live in a city.
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2378
32:13
Or own a phone. Or a brain.]
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32:14
[Cause of death: Apathy. But there's an antidote.]
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2357
32:17
(Applause)
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1937006
2538
32:19
[Stop f*cking everything up
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1415
32:21
Inaction on climate is obscene. We can fix this.]
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2358
32:23
CA: Too much?
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1167
32:24
CF: No, not too much, yay, go for it.
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1969
32:26
(Applause)
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1181
32:27
[Have you gotten any action lately?
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1722
32:29
Here's your chance. Help turn the tide on climate.]
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2467
32:32
(Laughter)
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1952015
1182
32:33
CA: I didn't like this one, but my team, you know --
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2494
32:35
CF: Apparently, there are many who do like it.
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2278
32:38
(Laughter)
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2293
32:40
[We give up. Sincerely, TED.
655
1960358
1413
32:41
Spreading ideas isn't enough. It's time to act. Join us?]
656
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2719
32:44
CA: This is, unfortunately, truer than you know.
657
1964538
2262
32:46
[Some things matter more than partisan politics
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2246
32:49
Come fight the enemy that can unite us.]
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1969094
1993
32:51
(Applause)
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1057
32:52
[Stop burnout
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1151
32:53
Your company can help save the earth.]
662
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1870
32:55
[Give the planet more than you take from it
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2119
32:57
Join the countdown.]
664
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1784
32:59
[Despair, meet hope
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1347
33:00
We can avoid climate catastrophe if we take urgent action now.]
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3028
33:03
CA: That's it.
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1151
33:04
(Applause and cheers)
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3042
33:07
CF: To bring this full circle,
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1483
33:09
we would like to bring someone very special in.
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1989383
3136
33:12
(Video) Hi, I'm Claire O'Neill.
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1666
33:14
I am the COP president-designate for next year's Conference of the Parties,
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4479
33:18
the annual UN climate change talks, which will be in the UK,
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2897
33:21
and we're looking forward to welcoming you there.
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2301
33:23
But right now, I'm in Spain, in Madrid,
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2786
33:26
at COP25, this annual event
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2618
33:29
where we send negotiators and activists from all over the world
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3254
33:32
to see what we can do to reduce CO2 emissions.
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2675
33:35
But the problem is this: emissions are going up, not down.
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3134
33:38
And what I'm feeling is that 2020 is the year of action,
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3040
33:41
the year where we have to stop talking
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1810
33:43
and we have to start acting.
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1348
33:44
And not just here, in these conference centers,
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2199
33:47
but everybody.
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1151
33:48
And so the value of the TED process,
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2551
33:50
the value of what we're all doing together
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2027
33:52
is that we're spreading out the conversations
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2135
33:54
and the solutions from inside this space
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3294
33:58
out to everybody.
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33:59
And I'm really looking forward to working with the TED group
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2817
34:02
over the next year.
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1191
34:03
2020, for me, will be the most important year for climate action,
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3056
34:06
and we're all going to deliver this together.
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2754
34:09
(Applause)
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2651
34:12
CF: OK, friends, so we're nearly there
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1947
34:14
but just a few more very special snippets.
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3416
34:17
First, a word from one of the many great minds
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4428
34:22
who will be accompanying us on this journey.
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2961
34:25
A message from the great author, historian and futurist
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4539
34:29
Yuval Harari.
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1150
34:31
Yuval Harari: Climate change is about inequality.
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2794
34:34
Inequality between the rich, who are mainly responsible for it,
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4023
34:38
and the poor, who will suffer the most.
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2600
34:41
Inequality between us, Homo sapiens,
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2770
34:44
who control this planet,
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1594
34:46
and the other animals, who are our helpless victims.
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34:50
Inequality between the scientists,
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2090355
2405
34:52
who painstakingly search for the truth,
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2992
34:55
and the professional deceivers,
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2095800
2015
34:57
who spread falsehoods at the click of a button.
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2097839
2966
35:01
Climate change is about making a choice.
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2826
35:04
What kind of planet do we want to inhabit,
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3031
35:07
and what kind of humans do we want to be?
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2107855
2733
35:11
A choice between greed and compassion,
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3308
35:14
between carelessness and responsibility,
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3071
35:17
between closing our eyes to the truth
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3016
35:20
and opening our hearts to the world.
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2904
35:24
Climate change is a crisis,
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2111
35:26
but for humans, a crisis is always also an opportunity.
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35:31
If we make the right choices in the coming years,
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3484
35:35
we cannot only save the ecosystem,
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2936
35:38
but we can also create a more just world
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3548
35:41
and make ourselves better people.
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2442
35:46
(Applause)
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35:53
CF: So isn't that a powerful framing of what we have ahead of us,
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3254
35:56
and honestly, I think it is tragic
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2156324
3482
35:59
that the power of transformation that we have ahead of us
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3715
36:03
is so severely diminished by those who would want to politicize the issue
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4567
36:08
and separate it into partisan politics.
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2168160
3365
36:11
It cannot be a partisan issue,
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2171549
2619
36:14
it cannot be a politicized issue.
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2200
36:16
Happily, there are some who are working against that.
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2793
36:19
Today, we have one of those people,
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2849
36:22
a fantastically courageous climate scientist,
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3310
36:25
who is a committed Christian,
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2185792
1936
36:27
and who has been working on this issue
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1842
36:29
with conservatives and with the religious and spiritual communities for years,
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4326
36:33
with incredible courage.
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2174
36:36
Katharine Hayhoe.
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1150
36:38
(Applause)
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2198437
2087
36:40
Katherine Hayhoe: When someone says climate change, we often think,
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3242
36:43
"Oh, that's just an environmental issue.
742
2203814
1950
36:45
People who are tree huggers or scientists care about it,
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2643
36:48
or maybe people who are on the left hand-side of the political spectrum."
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3442
36:51
But the reality is, whether we know it or not,
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2163
36:54
we already care about climate change, no matter who we are.
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3239
36:57
Why?
747
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1168
36:58
Because climate change affects everything we already care about today.
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3554
37:02
It affects our health,
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2222141
1412
37:03
it affects the food we eat,
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1730
37:05
the water we drink, the air that we breathe.
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2746
37:08
Climate change affects the economy and national security.
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3302
37:11
I care about a changing climate because it is, as the military calls it,
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3912
37:15
a threat multiplier.
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1539
37:17
It takes issues like poverty and hunger,
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2595
37:19
disease, lack of access to clean water,
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2453
37:22
even political instability,
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37:24
and exacerbates or amplifies them.
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37:27
That's why, to care about a changing climate,
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2103
37:29
we don't have to be a certain type of person.
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2111
37:31
A thermometer isn't blue or red,
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2302
37:33
liberal or conservative --
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1572
37:35
it gives us the same number no matter how we vote.
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2903
37:38
And we are all affected by the impacts of a changing climate.
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3397
37:41
So to care about a changing climate,
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1809
37:43
all we have to be is one thing:
766
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1762
37:45
a human, living on planet Earth.
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2056
37:47
And we're all that.
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1658
37:49
(Applause)
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37:52
CF: And finally,
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1151
37:54
the man who brought this issue so powerfully to everyone's attention
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37:58
years ago
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1484
38:00
and has continued tirelessly to work on that issue ever since.
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5115
38:05
The one and very only, Al Gore.
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3125
38:08
(Applause)
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3371
38:12
(Video) Al Gore: Thank you.
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1306
38:13
(Applause)
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1323
38:14
Thank you so much, Christiana,
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1455
38:16
and thank you for your outstanding leadership,
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2705
38:19
and thank you, Chris Anderson and the entire TED community,
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3855
38:23
YouTube and all of the others who are joining
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3603
38:26
in this fantastic initiative.
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2150
38:29
I have just three messages.
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1765
38:31
Number one, this crisis is incredibly urgent.
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3615
38:35
Just yesterday, the scientists gave us the report
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3324
38:38
that emissions are still going up.
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2730
38:41
Every single day,
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38:42
we're putting 150 million tons of man-made global warming pollution
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5858
38:48
into the thin shell of atmosphere surrounding our planet.
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3492
38:52
The accumulated amount now traps as much extra energy every day
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4383
38:56
as would be released by 500,000 first-generation atomic bombs
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5216
39:01
exploding every single day.
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2265
39:04
And the consequences are increasingly clear --
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3262
39:07
all that mother nature is telling us,
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2923
39:10
the fires, and the sea-level rise,
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1793
39:12
and the floods, and the mud slides,
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2103
39:14
and the loss of living species.
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1952
39:16
But the second message that I have is the hope is very real.
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39:21
We actually do have the solutions available to us.
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39:25
It is unfortunately true at this moment,
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3017
39:28
that the crisis is getting worse faster than we are mobilizing these solutions.
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5856
39:34
But renewable energy and electric vehicles
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2096
39:36
and batteries and regenerative agriculture,
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2278
39:38
circular manufacturing,
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1786
39:40
and all of these other solutions are gaining momentum.
805
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3957
39:45
The late economist Rudi Dornbusch,
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1746
39:46
in articulating what's known as Dornbusch's law, said,
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3770
39:50
"Things take longer to happen than you think they will.
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3484
39:54
But then, they happen much faster than you thought they could."
809
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3256
39:57
We can pick up the pace.
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2397
40:00
We are gaining momentum
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1746
40:02
and soon, we will be gaining on the crisis.
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2785
40:04
But it is essential that everyone join --
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3017
40:07
of every political persuasion,
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2189
40:10
every ideological persuasion,
815
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2214
40:12
every nationality,
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1243
40:13
every division has to be obliterated, so that we, humanity,
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4725
40:18
can join together.
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2015
40:20
And in closing, I would just say that for anyone who doubts
819
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40:24
that we as human beings
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2747
40:27
have the ability to rise to this occasion,
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3777
40:31
when everything is on the line,
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2102
40:33
just remember that political will is itself a renewable resource.
823
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4659
40:38
(Laughter)
824
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1001
40:39
(Applause)
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7000
40:50
CA: Thank you so much.
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1198
40:51
Thank you so much, Al, for your leadership on this issue
827
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2642
40:54
for so many years.
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1200
40:56
None of this would be possible
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1792
40:58
without an extraordinary and fast-growing list of partners.
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3723
41:02
I'd like to acknowledge them.
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1867
41:04
(Applause)
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4097
41:08
If you're watching this,
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1198
41:10
you believe your organization should be part of this,
834
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2691
41:12
you can help in some way,
835
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1690
41:14
join us, email me, [email protected].
836
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2452
41:17
This is going to take everyone.
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2071
41:19
OK, before the Q and A,
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1920
41:21
I just want to ask you a question personally, Christiana.
839
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3333
41:25
Like, what do you really think?
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1894
41:27
(Laughter)
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1023
41:28
No, you've been in so many of these.
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2944
41:31
Does this initiative have a chance?
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2334
41:35
CF: Well, first of all,
844
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2643
41:38
we are at the point where everything plays.
845
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3523
41:41
Everything plays.
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1802
41:43
And I'm really excited about this,
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2611
41:46
because it has been very painful to me to see how over the past 12 to 18 months
848
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5658
41:51
because of the tragically insufficient response
849
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3349
41:55
that we have had to climate change,
850
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1755
41:56
how that zeitgeist has been changing from where we were in Paris,
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3285
42:00
which was pretty positive and optimistic,
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2286
42:02
to, now, despair, helplessness, anger.
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3548
42:06
That's what is out there, roaming on the streets.
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2294
42:08
And I don't blame them, and I have the same feelings.
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2477
42:11
But the point is,
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1236
42:12
we have to be able to transform that into making the difference.
857
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4695
42:17
And I think this is what this initiative is actually potentially ready to do,
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4968
42:22
which is to give every single person who feels helpless --
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42:26
give them a tool to do something.
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2786
42:29
Some will contribute small efforts,
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2302
42:31
some will contribute large efforts --
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1782
42:33
depends on what your influence area is.
863
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3446
42:37
And to those who feel angry and despairing,
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5406
42:42
well, give them also an opportunity to channel that energy --
865
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4809
42:47
which is very powerful energy --
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1826
42:49
into solutions.
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42:51
And finally, what is very exciting about this
868
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3040
42:54
is the scale, Chris, right?
869
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2039
42:56
I mean, just look at those partners that are going to be there.
870
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43:00
We have attempted many, many things to bring to scale.
871
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3368
43:04
But this, I think, is the most promising initiative that I have seen,
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43:09
to be able to bring people to scale,
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43:11
to bring efforts and solutions to scale.
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43:13
And speed.
875
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43:15
Because if there's one thing that we cannot, cannot fail on,
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43:20
is addressing climate change,
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1500
43:22
but not only that,
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43:23
to do so in a timely way.
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43:25
CA: Thank you, that is eloquent.
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2190
43:27
And thank you.
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43:29
That's it.
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43:30
(Applause)
883
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7000
43:37
OK, we have many members of the world's leading media here.
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5881
43:43
We're going to have a Q and A,
885
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43:44
they should probably have priority on questions.
886
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2301
43:47
If it all goes deathly silent, someone else can ask a question.
887
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3015
43:50
If you're a member of the media here,
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2257
43:52
please feel free to put your hand up -- we'll throw a mic to you,
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3534
43:56
and we'll do the best we can.
890
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1934
43:59
Rachel Crane: Hi, Rachel Crane from CNN.
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2031
44:01
My question for you is about more specific action
892
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3016
44:04
that will come out of Countdown.
893
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1563
44:05
We heard a lot today
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1151
44:07
about how this is mobilizing the globe on this issue,
895
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2492
44:09
breaking people out of their silos, companies out of their silos,
896
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3094
44:12
but I'm curious to know, paint a picture for us,
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2271
44:15
of what the action that will come out of this initiative
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3325
44:18
could potentially look like.
899
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1342
44:19
I'm sure it's all in early phases,
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1785
44:21
we won't hold you specifically to this.
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2071
44:23
CA: There's an intense process going on between now and October,
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4117
44:27
where we're trying to engage
903
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1373
44:29
all of the world's best thinking on climate
904
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3476
44:32
around those five big areas.
905
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1889
44:34
What we're hoping to have there is multiple proposals in there
906
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3393
44:38
that collectively take a huge bite out of those issues.
907
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4644
44:42
Some of them, there may be one big one that dominates.
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3675
44:46
You know, so transport, for example.
909
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2158
44:49
Could we accelerate the end
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44:51
of the internal combustion engine, somehow?
911
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2092
44:53
What would that take?
912
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1185
44:54
That would be a classic problem made for this approach,
913
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2647
44:57
because what governments decide right now
914
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2897
45:00
depends on what they see happening elsewhere.
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3321
45:04
Would the decisions of auto executives be shifted
916
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2468
45:06
if they saw millions of people on social media saying,
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45:09
"I will never buy a combustion engine"?
918
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2027
45:11
Would they be shifted by the market signal of a few hundred mayors, saying,
919
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3698
45:15
"We are creating a carbon-zero zone in our city,
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4103
45:19
and we're going to expand it,
921
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1794
45:21
and we're doing that soon"?
922
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1311
45:22
Would they be shifted by a visionary auto CEO taking the risk
923
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3992
45:26
and coming forward and saying,
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45:28
"You know when we said we were going to continue this till 2050?
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3021
45:31
No. We can see the writing on the wall,
926
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1864
45:33
we want to be on the right side of history,
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2048
45:35
we're doing this in 2030."
928
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1253
45:36
We think there might be a pathway to that.
929
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2047
45:38
So on some of these issues,
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45:39
it's going to depend on a massive amount of discussion, bringing people together,
931
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5040
45:44
showing -- this is what you're so masterful at --
932
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45:48
is showing that other people don't have the attitudes
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45:50
that you think they have.
934
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1302
45:52
They're actually shifting, you better shift.
935
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2055
45:54
And so it's mutually raising everyone's ambition level.
936
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4127
45:58
And that is a cycle that happens,
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2452
46:01
and we've already seen it happening.
938
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1786
46:03
And so, on each of these issues, that's what we're looking for.
939
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46:06
The biggest, boldest things.
940
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1618
46:07
Dream bigger than we normally do,
941
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1889
46:09
because there are more people at the table than there normally are,
942
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3682
46:13
i.e. millions of citizens engaged in this.
943
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3080
46:16
That's the process, and while that is happening,
944
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2587
46:19
there'll be multiple other engagements in companies and cities around the world.
945
2779141
3920
46:23
We hope that it all comes together in a thrilling manner in October
946
2783085
4024
46:27
and we have something to celebrate.
947
2787133
1679
46:28
Dominique Drakeford: My name is Dominique Drakeford
948
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2437
46:31
with MelaninASS, or social media as a form of media.
949
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3970
46:36
In understanding the inherent correlation
950
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2987
46:39
between the accumulation of carbon in the atmosphere
951
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5238
46:45
and the cumulative exploitation
952
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2566
46:47
and extraction, extractivism economy,
953
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4759
46:52
which creates sacrifice zones for black and indigenous communities,
954
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4254
46:56
how do we plan to,
955
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2269
46:59
or how do you guys plan to mitigate those systems of oppression
956
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5556
47:04
as part of your strategies within those five various components,
957
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5077
47:09
so that we can really begin to reduce emissions?
958
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3397
47:13
CF: If the transformation in our economy and our society
959
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2757
47:16
does not include inequality closing and social justice issues,
960
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5641
47:22
then we're doing nothing.
961
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1816
47:24
Because all of those things will come back to bite us.
962
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2548
47:26
So we have to put our arms around the entire package.
963
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3564
47:30
That is not easy, but it is entirely possible.
964
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2262
47:32
And that's one of the things that I am so excited about climate change,
965
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3365
47:35
because it is at the front of this transformation,
966
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4079
47:40
but it will bring many of the other issues
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3802
47:43
that have been relegated to nonattention.
968
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47:49
It will bring those issues to the fore as well.
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47:52
So the transformation has to be an integrative transformation.
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4397
47:56
Ellen Maloney: Hi, Chris, hi, Christina.
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47:58
My question is, are individual efforts,
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2722
48:01
like ditching plastic straws or going vegan,
973
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4301
48:05
making a difference
974
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1254
48:06
or are they just tokenistic drops in the ocean?
975
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3159
48:10
CF: Good question.
976
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1182
48:11
CA: It's a good question.
977
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48:12
CF: They are totally important.
978
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48:15
Absolutely important.
979
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48:16
Because it's not just about the one straw that I use.
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3230
48:19
It's about me not using that straw,
981
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48:22
going to a restaurant and telling the waitress,
982
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2229
48:24
"Excuse me, I don't want a plastic straw, because --"
983
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2547
48:27
and giving her a little lesson,
984
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1523
48:28
then she goes up to the manager, the manager comes to the table and says,
985
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3490
48:32
"Excuse me, could you explain that to me?"
986
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2095
48:34
Then you go through the lesson.
987
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1513
48:36
And sooner than you think,
988
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1289
48:37
you have that restaurant, plus the other ones.
989
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2243
48:39
Actually, information is contagious.
990
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2574
48:42
And wanting to do the right thing is also contagious.
991
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3659
48:46
So don't look at it as just simply, you know, "What is a straw?
992
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4023
48:50
Am I using the straw or am I not using plastic bags,
993
2930466
5552
48:56
I have my plant-based bags to go shopping," etc., etc.
994
2936042
6858
49:03
All of that counts.
995
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1645
49:05
It counts for you, first of all,
996
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1712
49:06
because it is a personal reminder of who you are and what you stand for,
997
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5074
49:12
but it is also a very important tool
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4032
49:16
to educate everyone around you.
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2269
49:18
CA: Right, and I think the core of our initiative is,
1000
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2540
49:21
all that stuff matters -- what you eat,
1001
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2147
49:23
how you transport yourself, etc., it matters a lot.
1002
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2405
49:25
But there is another piece of power that individuals have
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3932
49:29
that they don't think about as much, perhaps,
1004
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3450
49:33
and that we think that they should, we invite them to,
1005
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2580
49:35
which is what they can do as an employee
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2142
49:38
and what they can do as a member of a city.
1007
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2016
49:40
There's a coming together here,
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1722
49:41
where by getting organized, by connecting with others,
1009
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3000
49:44
we think there is a direct route to changing decisions
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3648
49:48
that will have an even bigger impact on the problem.
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3170
49:51
So it's yes, all of that, but more as well.
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3606
49:55
(Laughter)
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1183
49:56
CF: There is an online [question], from a classroom of children.
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4301
50:00
CA: From a classroom of children?
1015
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1629
50:02
CF: "What can students do?"
1016
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1331
50:03
Yay, I love that question, totally love that question.
1017
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2781
50:06
So first of all,
1018
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1690
50:08
Fridays, 11 o'clock, go strike.
1019
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2134
50:11
I mean, honestly, right?
1020
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50:13
(Applause)
1021
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1365
50:14
Let's go, let's go.
1022
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50:16
And that pressure has to be maintained.
1023
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2564
50:18
I'm totally delighted that there's some people here
1024
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50:21
who've been here doing it for 52 weeks.
1025
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50:24
The problem with this is, folks,
1026
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1755
50:25
this is not a sprint, it's a marathon.
1027
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2714
50:28
So you better get ready for many more 52 weeks, right?
1028
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4206
50:32
And get more people involved,
1029
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50:34
because this is not easy.
1030
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50:36
If it were easy, we would have done it.
1031
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1880
50:38
This is going to be a long-term effort.
1032
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2326
50:40
But fantastic to be out there in the streets,
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2634
50:43
you are getting so much more attention from the media,
1034
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2540
50:46
from us stupid adults who have not done our job --
1035
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3095
50:49
it is fantastic.
1036
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1150
50:50
So, you know, get your voices out there.
1037
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50:52
Also, in school,
1038
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1611
50:54
you can definitely go and improve --
1039
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3254
50:57
The question that you just asked to TED,
1040
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2190
50:59
that's the question every student should be asking their school:
1041
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3024
51:02
"Where's my energy coming from?"
1042
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1592
51:04
Let's get with it, right?
1043
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1237
51:05
Students in colleges --
1044
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1402
51:07
how is it possible that we still have colleges and universities
1045
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3003
51:10
that are not 100 percent clean energy
1046
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3165
51:13
and that haven't shifted their capital and their endowment
1047
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4064
51:17
over to low carbon?
1048
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2024
51:19
I mean, it's just incredible.
1049
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1503
51:21
(Applause)
1050
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51:23
And finally, the most important thing that young people can do
1051
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4238
51:27
is ask your parents,
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51:30
"What the hell are you doing about my future?"
1053
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2741
51:33
Because here is an amazing thing.
1054
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3180
51:37
I have spoken in -- I was thinking how many --
1055
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2484
51:39
I've spoken to at least three if not four CEOs from the oil and gas industry.
1056
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5436
51:45
I've spoken to three or four major investors,
1057
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4334
51:49
heads of their investment firms,
1058
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2103
51:51
who come up to me, usually in private,
1059
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3238
51:54
and say, "Christiana, the reason why I'm changing what I do in my business
1060
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5699
52:00
is because my daughter, or my son,
1061
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3270
52:03
asks me at night, 'What the hell are you doing about my future?' "
1062
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5325
52:10
That is a very powerful question,
1063
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2913
52:13
and only young people can ask that question.
1064
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2920
52:16
Use that tool --
1065
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2263
52:18
ask your parents what are they doing about your future.
1066
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3740
52:22
Sorry about the h-word.
1067
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1533
52:24
(Applause)
1068
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6761
52:31
Jo Confino: Hi, I'm Jo Confino, the HuffPost.
1069
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2333
52:33
Christiana, a question for you,
1070
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2119
52:35
which is one of the things that didn't come out so much
1071
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3187
52:38
and this is about the spiritual traditions
1072
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2465
52:41
and the role they play,
1073
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2278
52:43
because what we're seeing
1074
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1607
52:45
is that, actually, old wisdom is coming out
1075
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2299
52:47
in terms of interdependence
1076
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1519
52:49
and nothing is separate from anything else.
1077
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2013
52:51
What is the spiritual tradition we can bring to this
1078
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2508
52:53
that will make, also, a difference?
1079
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1718
52:55
CF: What I think is very powerful about understanding,
1080
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3314
52:58
whether you happen to be a spiritual person
1081
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53:02
that pursues meditation and mindfulness
1082
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3792
53:06
or whether you're a religious person or not,
1083
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2539
53:08
what I think is very powerful
1084
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2079
53:10
about the spiritual understanding of the human presence on this earth,
1085
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4915
53:15
is to understand that we are not separate.
1086
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4285
53:20
It's not like, "Over there is planet Earth,
1087
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3110
53:23
and then humans are over here."
1088
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2167
53:25
And we are totally interconnected with all other species
1089
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53:28
and with all other living beings,
1090
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1757
53:30
and doing the responsible thing by them,
1091
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3666
53:34
does the responsible thing by us.
1092
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2071
53:36
And vice versa.
1093
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1326
53:37
And so that interconnectedness
1094
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1817
53:39
is one that comes from the spiritual traditions,
1095
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53:41
but you don't have to be religious or spiritual to understand that.
1096
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3206
53:45
You know, the fact is,
1097
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1373
53:46
every single drop of water that we drink comes from nature.
1098
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53:50
Every single morsel of food that we eat
1099
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2413
53:52
comes from nature.
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53:53
And we've got to heal that connection.
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2365
53:56
CA: We would welcome engagement.
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1547
53:57
(Applause)
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3649
54:01
Kaley Roshitsh: Hi, Kaley Roshitsh from Women's Wear Daily.
1104
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3111
54:04
Obviously, the fashion industry is responsible for a lot
1105
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2747
54:07
of the carbon output,
1106
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1513
54:09
so I wondered what is your perspective on conscious consumption?
1107
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3841
54:13
CA: The key goal here is to align, at the same time,
1108
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4507
54:18
to change opinion on what companies do,
1109
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2239
54:20
what employees do, what consumers do.
1110
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2238
54:22
It's the shifts all happening at the same time that can make change.
1111
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4674
54:27
Right now, someone else is always the problem.
1112
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2183
54:29
"Our investors wouldn't allow us to do that."
1113
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2134
54:32
"There is no market for this better, more sustainable product."
1114
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3573
54:35
And so, all the pieces need to happen at the same time.
1115
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3071
54:39
That's our hope.
1116
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1722
54:40
And so the lead on this is not us,
1117
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2168
54:42
it's employees and CEOs and leadership teams
1118
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3388
54:46
working in that industry.
1119
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2397
54:49
Get together, make something happen.
1120
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2561
54:52
And ride the tide of the zeitgeist shift that is happening --
1121
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4740
54:57
it's going to work out from the business point of view as well.
1122
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2972
55:00
CF: Can I jump on that as well?
1123
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55:01
Because for years, for centuries,
1124
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3611
55:05
we have been on a consumer extract-and-consume mentality.
1125
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5024
55:10
They way we go about our life
1126
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55:12
and the way that businesses are created
1127
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2087
55:14
is extract, use, discard, extract, use, discard.
1128
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3674
55:18
That's a simplification, but honestly, it's about as simple as that.
1129
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3250
55:21
And to understand that that linear extraction to discard
1130
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4603
55:26
can no longer be the case, that it needs to be circular now,
1131
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3015
55:29
we have to go into a circular economy
1132
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3523
55:32
that uses every single resource that we extract --
1133
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2892
55:35
because we will continue to extract --
1134
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1826
55:37
that uses it not once but two, three, four, five, 10 times,
1135
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3099
55:40
around and around in circles.
1136
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1515
55:42
That's a circular economy.
1137
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1371
55:43
And we have to get to that point,
1138
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2079
55:45
because frankly, we're running out of resources to continue to extract.
1139
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4571
55:50
Jodi Xu Klein: Hi, my name is Jodi Xu Klein.
1140
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2262
55:52
I'm with the South China Morning Post, a Hong Kong publication here in the US.
1141
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5047
55:57
So, we've been reporting on trade war for more than a year,
1142
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3502
56:00
and we're actually living in a world
1143
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2607
56:03
where countries are decoupling from each other.
1144
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2884
56:06
How do you overcome that trend and bring everyone together?
1145
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5334
56:11
CA: We don't know,
1146
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1198
56:13
these are really challenging issues.
1147
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1722
56:14
What we do know is that we have to bring everyone to the table
1148
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56:17
and have the discussion.
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56:19
There are so many people in China,
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56:20
including, on many occasions,
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56:22
the Chinese government has made bold steps
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56:25
to tackle this issue.
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56:27
There's a lot that the West can learn from what's happening in China.
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56:31
CF: I would say,
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56:32
in a world in which we're seeing a wave of nationalism and populism,
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56:37
the way we go at this is actually to expand
1157
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56:41
the breadth of engagement,
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56:44
so not to let the responsibility of engaging on climate
1159
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56:49
be in national government hands only.
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56:51
Yes, they have an important role,
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56:53
but we can bring it down as well
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56:55
to a different level of engagement which is every single human being.
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57:00
And once we understand that we're all human beings
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57:03
and that we all have a common future,
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57:05
there's no such thing as all of us being in a boat
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57:07
and only the one closest to the hole in the boat are going to sink.
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57:10
No.
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57:12
Either we all sink or we all float together.
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57:14
Justine Calma: My name is Justine Calma, I'm with The Verge,
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2825
57:16
thanks so much for this.
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57:18
My question is about TED and YouTube's own carbon footprint.
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57:24
Streaming video eats up a huge amount of energy,
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57:28
and I'm curious what TED and YouTube
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5326
57:33
might be doing to reduce their own greenhouse gas emissions
1175
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3618
57:37
connected to that.
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57:40
CA: I can't speak for YouTube, obviously.
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57:42
I will say that, to quote a line from George Monbiot,
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57:46
all of us are hypocrites in this movement.
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57:49
If you've ever bought something
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57:51
or you're wearing clothes, or you're eating food,
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3513
57:54
you're a hypocrite, you're creating emissions.
1182
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57:57
It's part of life.
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57:58
And I think perfection is --
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4044
58:03
There's a risk that perfection,
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58:04
that an overpursuit and focus on that
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58:08
and the judging that comes with it can slow everyone down.
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58:12
We want this to be a coalition of the willing who accept
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58:15
that they're not perfect but are willing to act.
1189
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58:18
Now, this whole process has sparked a huge conversation in TED
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4198
58:22
about how we act more responsibly,
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58:25
and that will continue.
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58:26
We're certainly not going to stop streaming videos.
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58:30
At some point you have to do math,
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1643
58:31
it's like that -- give to the planet more than you take from it,
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58:35
I think is the golden rule that I personally really believe in.
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58:39
And so if an idea, powered by a little bit of electricity,
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58:43
can ignite in someone's brain,
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2118
58:45
I would bet on the idea over saving the electricity.
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58:49
But there's no perfection in this.
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58:50
And we definitely have a lot that we need to improve on.
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58:53
Let's go here and then back.
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58:54
Lane Florsheim: Hi, I'm Lane Florsheim from the Wall Street Journal Magazine
1203
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58:58
and Chris, I really liked what you were saying
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59:00
about the fashion industry and what they can do to change
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59:03
and how it requires employees and CEOs to meet together
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2583
59:06
because who understands an industry better than the people in it
1207
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3032
59:09
and their processes and infrastructure,
1208
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1905
59:11
but I'm wondering, what about companies with huge footprints,
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59:14
and two that come to mind first are Amazon and Zara,
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3825
59:18
where, by all accounts,
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59:19
the workers, the employees there don't have very much power
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59:22
and the CEOs don't have very much incentive to change right now.
1213
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59:27
What would you say about those kinds of companies?
1214
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59:31
CA: So this is going to be such an important conversation going forward,
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59:34
because we're in the ironic position
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2256
59:37
where the people who can do the most to solve this problem
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59:40
are the people who are currently the worst offenders.
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59:43
So what do we do?
1219
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59:44
Do we make them part of the conversation or not?
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59:47
I say we make them part of the conversation,
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59:49
so long as we see serious engagement.
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59:52
So take Amazon.
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59:53
Jeff Bezos has actually listened to what many of his employees have said --
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59:58
they've been very vigorous, the employee base there,
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60:01
about carbon footprint --
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60:02
has listened, has engaged with you and with others.
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60:05
And they have announced, I think it's correct to say announced --
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60:09
CF: Yes, they have.
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60:11
CA: ... an acceleration of their own commitment
1230
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60:13
to go to, basically, a net zero track by 2040, if I have it right.
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60:19
It's the companies with the thousands, the tens of thousands of trucks
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60:24
and the packaging and all the rest of it.
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60:26
That is how this problem will get solved.
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60:29
So I say we invite these CEOs to be part of this,
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60:34
and urge them to take it seriously
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60:37
and to go fast and maybe even faster than they're completely comfortable doing.
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4134
60:42
But that's, I think, what we have to do.
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60:44
Not to defame, denounce,
1239
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4152
60:48
before we've at least had a serious conversation about,
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60:51
"It's time,
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60:53
your employees want to do this,
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1500
60:54
your customers want to do this,
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60:56
your investors increasingly want to do this, let's do this."
1244
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61:00
That's our hope.
1245
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61:01
CF: And the wonderful thing about companies the size of Amazon,
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61:04
or Walmart when they did it,
1247
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1488
61:06
is that they have a huge trickle-up effect.
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2742
61:09
Because when Jeff Bezos came out and said,
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2039
61:11
"I'm going to make Amazon climate-neutral by 2040 -- "
1250
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2877
61:14
Paris Agreement says 2050,
1251
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1250
61:15
of course he wants to do everything better than that,
1252
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2506
61:18
so 2040 is for Amazon.
1253
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61:19
Well good, we're going to keep him to it.
1254
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61:21
Now, the amazing thing about that
1255
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61:23
is that in order for Amazon to be climate-neutral by 2040,
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4134
61:28
they have to work with all their supply chain going up.
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3110
61:31
They have to work with all of those companies
1258
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61:33
that deliver services and goods to them
1259
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61:35
for them to also be climate neutral ASAP.
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61:38
Because otherwise, they can't meet their own commitment.
1261
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61:41
So large companies are actually very, very key and instrumental to this,
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61:46
because it's not just about their footprint,
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2818
61:48
it's about the embedded footprint that they inherit in their supply chain.
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5238
61:54
And the transformation of that is really huge.
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61:57
CA: Last question.
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61:59
Jackie Padilla: My name is Jackie with NowThis News,
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2489
62:02
and every day, I work with young climate activists
1268
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62:04
like the ones we've heard today,
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62:06
but when we do stories on them,
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62:08
you know, including Greta Thunberg,
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62:09
I see fierce criticism that they face
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62:12
and largely, it's because of a generational gap.
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62:15
I don't know if you're familiar with the phrase "OK Boomer,"
1274
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2896
62:18
but it seems like there's a lot of guilt or accountability
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62:23
that some are looking for,
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62:24
and on the other end, we're looking at a lack of education
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2715
62:27
or just ignorance on the issue.
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1539
62:28
So what is your advice to young people to respond to that criticism
1279
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4544
62:33
to foster constructive conversations?
1280
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2842
62:36
CF: We should probably ask them.
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62:38
XB: Hi, thank you for your question.
1282
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62:40
CA: Come here.
1283
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62:42
(Applause)
1284
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1959
62:46
XB: It is true that we increasingly face criticism,
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2635
62:49
and it's not only when we speak to people, with climate deniers
1286
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3118
62:52
or things like that,
1287
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1151
62:53
but also on social media.
1288
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62:55
It is as much a tool to spread information
1289
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62:58
and organize our strikes
1290
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63:00
and get the information out there,
1291
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1915
63:02
but it's also a tool for people who want to undermine us,
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3119
63:05
to personally attack us.
1293
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2373
63:07
And the way in which we stay resilient
1294
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63:11
is when we build community with each other,
1295
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3722
63:15
when we organize,
1296
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63:16
we mimic the world we want to see.
1297
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63:18
There is no hierarchy in our organizing,
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2627
63:21
we are all working towards the same goal constructively,
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63:25
choosing our passions towards making the strike the best it can be.
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63:30
We got 300,000 people striking in New York,
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3683
63:34
we put together a whole concert,
1302
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2370
63:36
people called it "Climchella," it was great.
1303
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2507
63:39
(Laughter)
1304
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1793
63:41
But the point is that it's not going to stop us.
1305
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3897
63:45
The criticism is not going to stop us.
1306
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1889
63:47
And even though we know that we are kids,
1307
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2659
63:49
and we are not here to tell you all the solutions
1308
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3029
63:52
that already are out there.
1309
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2915
63:56
We are going to do it,
1310
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63:58
because every kid who cares about the climate crisis
1311
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2438
64:00
is going to grow up to study through an environmental lens
1312
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4651
64:05
and to change the world through that.
1313
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2737
64:08
So we are here to tell you,
1314
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3454
64:12
personally, climate activists that I know don't use "OK Boomer,"
1315
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4369
64:16
because we strive for intergenerational cooperation.
1316
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4713
64:21
And I think that blaming and dividing each other
1317
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4381
64:26
is not going to get us anywhere,
1318
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2325
64:28
which is why we don't use it,
1319
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1611
64:30
and I don't think it should be used,
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1715
64:31
and I actually want to thank everybody who is doing something,
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64:36
because action inspires action.
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3106
64:40
And you inspire us,
1323
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64:42
and we're glad that we inspire you as well.
1324
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2799
64:45
(Cheers and applause)
1325
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6759
64:52
(Applause)
1326
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64:55
CA: Wow.
1327
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64:56
(Applause)
1328
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1053
64:57
CF: There you have it.
1329
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64:59
(Applause and cheers)
1330
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65:02
(Applause)
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65:08
CA: There is no better note on which to end this.
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4881
65:13
Thank you.
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65:14
(Applause)
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6699
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