The economic injustice of plastic | Van Jones

翻译人员: Angelia King 校对人员: Kelvin Wang

我很荣幸能来到这里

I am honored to be here,

and I'm honored to talk about this topic,

我也很荣幸谈到这个话题，

which I think is of grave importance.

我认为这话题是极为重要的。

We've been talking a lot

我们已经谈论了很多关于

about the horrific impacts of plastic on the planet and on other species,

塑料给这个星球和其他物种

带来得可怕的影响，

but plastic hurts people, too --

但是塑料也影响着人们，

尤其是穷人。

especially poor people.

And both in the production of plastic,

无论是塑料的生产，

使用，还是处理

the use of plastic and the disposal of plastic,

最受塑料影响的

the people who have the bull's-eye on their foreheads

是穷人。

are poor people.

People got very upset

当得知英国石油公司的石油泄漏事件时

when the BP oil spill happened,

人们非常的生气

这是可以理解的。

for very good reason.

人们心想，“哦，上帝。

People thought, "Oh, my God.

This is terrible, this oil -- it's in the water.

这太可怕了，石油污染了水域。

它会毁了

It's going to destroy the living systems there.

那里的生态系统。

人们也会因此受害。

People are going to be hurt.

这真是一件可怕的事

This is a terrible thing,

this oil is going to hurt the people in the Gulf."

石油会毁了在墨西哥湾边生活的人们。”

What people don't think about is:

可人们没有想想

What if the oil had made it safely to shore?

如果那石油被安全地运输到岸上会怎样？

What if the oil actually got where it was trying to go?

如果石油真的到了它“要去”的地方会怎样？

它不仅仅会被发动机燃烧

Not only would it have been burned in engines and added to global warming,

加强全球变暖的趋势，

but there's a place called "Cancer Alley,"

而且会有一个地方被称为“癌症街区”

and the reason it's called "Cancer Alley"

之所以被称为“癌症街区”

is because the petrochemical industry

是因为石化工业

takes that oil and turns it into plastic

把石油加工生产成塑料

and in the process, kills people.

在这一过程中，它可以致人于死。

It shortens the lives of the people who live there in the Gulf.

它缩短了生活在墨西哥湾的人们的寿命。

So oil and petrochemicals are not just a problem when there's a spill;

所以不只是在石油泄漏的时候，石油和石化产品才成为一个问题，

即使当它没泄漏的时候，它们也是个问题。

they're a problem when there's not.

And what we don't often appreciate

我们通常不关注

为了我们能够使用这些一次性产品

is the price that poor people pay

for us to have these disposable products.

穷人所付出的代价

另一件我们常常漠不关心的事是

The other thing we often don't appreciate is,

穷人不只承受着塑料生产带来的危害

it's not just at the point of production that poor people suffer.

在使用时

Poor people also suffer at the point of use.

也同样受到危害。

Those of us who earn a certain income level,

我们中有一定收入水平的人

we have something called choice.

我们有种东西，叫做选择

The reason why you want to work hard and have a job

你想要工作努力，有一份工作

不想成为穷人，不想破产

and not be poor and broke

是因为你可以有选择，经济上的选择。

is so you can have choices, economic choices.

We actually get a chance to choose not to use products

我们的确可以选择

不去使用

那些危险，有毒的塑料产品。

that have dangerous, poisonous plastic in them.

而那些穷人则没有选择。

Other people who are poor don't have those choices.

So low-income people often are the ones

所以低收入的人们

who are buying the products that have those dangerous chemicals in them

常常会买

那些含有危险化学成分的产品，他们的孩子也会用这些产品。

that their children are using.

这些人最终

Those are the people who wind up ingesting a disproportionate amount

接触了过多的

这种有毒塑料，并使用它们。

of this poisonous plastic in using it.

And people say, "Well, they should just buy a different product."

人们会说，“那么，他们应该买别的产品。”

Well, the problem with being poor is you don't have those choices.

但是，穷困就意味着你没有这些选择。

You often have to buy the cheapest products.

你常常得买最便宜的产品。

The cheapest products are often the most dangerous.

而最便宜的产品往往是最危险的。

And if that weren't bad enough --

如果这还不够糟糕，

if it wasn't just the production of plastic that's giving people cancer

如果生产塑料不只是

像在“癌症街区”一样给人们带来癌症，缩短了人们的寿命，

in places like Cancer Alley,

and shortening lives and hurting poor kids at the point of use --

伤害可怜的儿童

在使用它们的时候，在处理它们的时候。

at the point of disposal,

再次，是穷人

once again, it's poor people who bear the burden.

承受着负担。

Often, we think we're doing a good thing:

我们经常觉得我们做了件好事

你在办公室里，

You're in your office, drinking your bottled water or whatever it is,

正喝着瓶装水，不管它是什么

然后你心想，“嘿，我要把它扔掉。

and you think to yourself, "I'm going to throw this away.

No -- I'm going to be virtuous. I'm going to put it in the blue bin."

不行，我得道德点儿。

我要把它放到蓝色回收箱。”

You think, "I put mine in the blue bin."

你想到，“我把我的塑料瓶放到蓝色回收箱。”

And then you look at your colleague and say,

然后你看着你的同事说，

“你知道吗，你是个傻冒，

"Why, you cretin! You put yours in the white bin."

你把你的塑料瓶放到白色垃圾箱里了。”

And we use that as a moral tickle.

我们把它当作一个道德戏法。

We feel so good about ourselves.

然后自我感觉良好。

If we -- well, OK, I'm just ... me.

或许我会原谅我自己。

Not you, but I feel this way often.

可能你不这样想，但我是这样觉得。

(Laughter)

And so we kind of have this moral feel-good moment.

因此我们貌似有了这么一个道德自我感觉良好的时刻

But if we were to be able to follow that little bottle

但是如果我们能够追踪小塑料瓶

on its journey,

的行程，

we would be shocked to discover that, all too often,

我们会惊讶地发现，通常

that bottle is going to be put on a boat,

塑料瓶会通过船运走。

我们会花上一些钱

it's going to go all the way across the ocean

让塑料瓶一路飘洋过海

at some expense,

and it's going to wind up in a developing country, often China.

塑料瓶最终去了发展中国家--往往是中国。

我认为，在我们脑海中，我们会设想有些人会拿着小塑料瓶，

I think in our minds, we imagine

somebody's going to take the little bottle and say,

说，“哦，小塑料瓶。

"Oh, little bottle! We're so happy to see you, little bottle."

我们很高兴看到你，小塑料瓶。”

(Laughter)

（笑声）

"You've served so well."

“你真是服务到家。”

(Laughter)

He's given a little bottle massage,

他会给小塑料瓶做按摩，

a little bottle medal.

给小塑料瓶一个奖牌。

And they say, "What would you like to do next?"

并说，“接下来你想做什么啊，小塑料瓶？”

The little bottle says, "I just don't know ..."

小塑料瓶说，“我不知道啊。”

(Laughter)

但是事实并不是这样。

But that's not actually what happens.

You know?

That bottle winds up getting burned.

那塑料瓶

最终被焚烧。

The recycling of plastic in many developing countries

在很多发展中国家的塑料回收

是指塑料的焚烧，

means the incineration of the plastic, the burning of the plastic,

塑料的燃烧，

which releases incredible toxic chemicals

它会释放大量的有毒化学物质

and, once again, kills people.

也会致人于死。

And so, poor people who are making these products

所以那些

制造塑料产品的穷人

in petrochemical centers like Cancer Alley,

像在“癌症街区”这样的石化中心里；

poor people who are consuming these products disproportionately,

穷人大量地使用这些有毒产品；

然后穷人

and then poor people who, even at the tail end of the recycling,

即使是在塑料回收链的下游，

are having their lives shortened.

他们的寿命也免不了被缩短，

They're all being harmed -- greatly --

所有穷人都极大地受到伤害

by this addiction that we have to disposability.

而这归结于我们习惯使用

一次性塑料。

Now, you think to yourself -- I know how you are --

现在你自己思考一下--因为我知道你的感受

you say, "That sure is terrible for those poor people.

你会说，“太可怕了

对那些穷人来讲。

简直太糟糕了，

It's just awful. Those poor people.

对他们来说。

我希望有人做点事来帮助他们。”

I hope someone does something to help them."

But what we don't understand is --

但我们所不了解的是

我们现在在洛杉矶。

here we are in Los Angeles.

We worked very hard to get the smog reduction

我们非常努力的工作

来减少洛杉矶的烟雾

happening here in Los Angeles.

But guess what?

但你猜怎么着？

Because they're doing so much dirty production in Asia now,

因为目前他们在亚洲进行很多污染型地生产，

因为目前环境法

because the environmental laws don't protect the people in Asia now,

并不保护亚洲人民，

almost all of the clean air gains and the toxic air gains

几乎所有的清新空气收益

和有毒空气收益

that we've achieved here in California

我们在加州所获得的，

have been wiped out by dirty air coming over from Asia.

都被来自亚洲的污染的空气严重抵消。

So we all are being hit. We all are being impacted.

所以我们都受到了伤害，我们都受到了影响。

It's just that the poor people get it first and worst.

只是穷人最先受到伤害,而且最严重。

But the dirty production, the burning of toxins,

但是亚洲污染型的生产，有毒塑料的燃烧，

the lack of environmental standards in Asia,

环境标准的缺失

is actually creating so much dirty air pollution,

造成了大量的空气污染

it's coming across the ocean,

污染的空气还飘洋过海，抵消了我们在加利福尼亚州获得的收益。

and has erased our gains here in California.

我们又回到了1970年代。

We're back where we were in the 1970s.

And so we're on one planet,

因为我们在同一个地球家园，

and we have to be able to get to the root of these problems.

我们必须找到这些问题的根本所在。

The root of this problem, in my view,

那么，依我看，这问题的根本

is the idea of disposability itself.

是一次性塑料这个点子本身。

You see, if you understand the link

你看，如果你了解

我们对毒害污染地球

between what we're doing to poison and pollute the planet

所做的事

and what we're doing to poor people,

和我们对穷人们所做的事之间的关系，

you arrive at a very troubling but also very helpful insight:

你得到一个非常大的麻烦，

但它也是非常有益的见解：

In order to trash the planet,

要污染地球家园，

you have to trash people.

就得污染到人们自身。

But if you create a world where you don't trash people,

但是如果你创建一个不污染人类的世界，

you can't trash the planet.

你就不可能污染地球家园。

So now we are at a moment

所以现在我们正处在一个时刻

社会公正理念和生态学理念

where the coming together of social justice as an idea

and ecology as an idea,

融合在了一起

现在我们终于能看到

we finally can now see

that they are really, at the end of the day, one idea.

这一天到来了，它们合为了一个理念。

And it's the idea that we don't have disposable anything.

这理念就是我们不再使用有关一次性的任何东西。

We don't have disposable resources.

我们不再使用一次性资源。

We don't have disposable species.

我们不再用一次性物种。

我们也不会有可抛弃的人。

And we don't have disposable people, either.

We don't have a throwaway planet,

我们不会让地球家园荒废，

and we don't have throwaway children -- it's all precious.

我们不会有弃儿--它们都是极其珍贵的。

And as we all begin to come back to that basic understanding,

当我们都回到这基本共识上，

new opportunities for action begin to emerge.

行动的新时机开始形成。

生物仿生，

Biomimicry,

which is an emerging science,

它是一种

新兴科学，

winds up being a very important social justice idea.

最终变成一种非常重要的社会公正理念。

People who are just learning about this stuff:

人们刚刚学习这理念，

生物仿生指

biomimicry means respecting the wisdom of all species.

要尊重所有物种的智慧。

顺便提一下，民主

Democracy, by the way,

means respecting the wisdom of all people -- we'll get to that.

指尊重所有人民的智慧--我们会努力做到。

但生物仿生指尊重所有物种的智慧。

But biomimicry means respecting the wisdom of all species.

我们人类是聪明的物种，

It turns out we're a pretty clever species.

We have this big cortex, we're pretty proud of ourselves.

我们有这种大脑皮层，不管怎么说，我们对自己感到自豪

But if we want to make something hard,

但是我们想做个硬的东西，

we say, "I know! I'm going to make a hard substance.

我们提出，“我知道，我要做一件硬东西。

I know! I'm going to get vacuums and furnaces

我要使用真空吸尘器和炉子

and drag stuff out of the ground

把东西从地上弄起来

and get things hot and poison and pollute ...

使得它们变热，排出有毒物质，并污染大气，

But I got this hard thing!"

但我做了这件很难的事。

(Laughter)

我是如此聪明。”

"I'm so clever!"

And you look behind you, and there's destruction all around you.

然后你回头一看，周围都被破坏了。

But guess what?

但猜怎么着？你是相当聪明，

You're so clever, but you're not as clever as a clam.

但你可没有蚌那么聪明。

A clamshell is hard.

蚌的贝壳是硬的。

There's no vacuums. There's no big furnaces.

不用真空吸尘器，不用炉子，

There's no poison. There's no pollution.

不用释放有毒物质，没有污染。

It turns out that other species figured out a long time ago

其实其它物种

很久以前就证明了

怎样用生物的方式来创造

how to create many of the things we need

using biological processes that nature knows how to use well.

我们所需要的很多东西。大自然用得非常好。

那么对生物仿生的洞察，

That insight of biomimicry, of our scientists finally realizing

我们科学家最终意识到

that we have as much to learn from other species --

我们还有很多东西要从其他物种那儿学。

我不是指拿一个老鼠

I don't mean taking a mouse and sticking it with stuff.

然后塞给它东西。

I don't mean looking at it from that way, abusing the little species.

我不是指那个：虐待小动物。

I mean actually respecting them, respecting what they've achieved.

我真正指得是尊重它们，尊重它们在自然生态链中的属性。

这才是生物仿生，

That's called biomimicry,

and that opens the door to zero waste production;

这样才会打开通向

零废物生产，

zero pollution production;

零污染生产的大门。

that we could actually enjoy

这样我们才可以享受

a high quality of life, a high standard of living,

一种高质量的生活，一种高标准的生活

还不必毁灭我们的地球家园。

without trashing the planet.

Well, that idea of biomimicry,

那么生物仿生的理念，

respecting the wisdom of all species,

尊重所有物种的智慧，

与民主和社会公正

combined with the idea of democracy and social justice,

的理念相结合，

尊重全体人民的智慧和价值，

respecting the wisdom and the worth of all people,

would give us a different society.

会给我们一个不同的社会。

We would have a different economy.

我们会有一个不一样的经济。

We would have a green society

我们会有一个绿色环保社会，

that Dr. King would be proud of.

它会使马丁·路德·金感到骄傲的。

这才是我们的目标。

That should be the goal.

And the way that we get there is to first of all recognize

我们要实现此目标得首先要了解

that the idea of disposability

一次性物品的理念

not only hurts the species we've talked about,

不仅伤害了

我们所谈到的物种，

but it even corrupts our own society.

它甚至还腐蚀着我们的社会。

We're so proud to live here in California.

我们很自豪生活在加利福尼亚州。

We just had this vote, and everybody's like,

我们刚投过这次票，每个人都喜欢，

"Well -- not in our state!"

“那么，这投票不在我们州。

(Laughter)

我不知道那些其他州在做什么？”

I don't know what those other states were doing, but ..."

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Just so proud.

只是很自豪。

我也很自豪。

And, yeah, I'm proud, too.

But ...

但是加利福尼亚州，

California, though we lead the world in some of the green stuff,

尽管在一些绿色科技上我们在世界上领先着，

we also, unfortunately, lead the world

不幸的是，我们也在世界上领先着

in some of the gulag stuff.

监狱系统的一些事。

California has one of the highest incarceration rates

在全美50州中，加利福尼亚州

有着最高的监禁率。

of all the 50 states.

We have a moral challenge in this movement.

在这一刻，我们面临着道德挑战。

我们对从垃圾填埋场拯救

We are passionate about rescuing some dead materials from the landfill,

一些无生命的材料很有激情，

但有时我们

but sometimes not as passionate

about rescuing living beings, living people.

对拯救众生，活着的人们却没有激情。

And I would say that we live in a country --

我想说我们生活在美国，

five percent of the world's population,

占全世界总人口的5%，

25 percent of the greenhouse gases,

温室气体占25%，

but also 25 percent of the world's prisoners.

但也占全世界总囚犯人数的25%。

全球每四个囚犯中就有一个囚犯

One of every four people locked up anywhere in the world

被关押在美国。

is locked up right here in the United States.

因此这也与

So that is consistent with this idea

that disposability is something we believe in.

我们相信的一次性的理念相符合。（没有可抛弃的人或者弃儿。）

还有，

And yet,

as a movement that has to broaden its constituency,

作为一种运动

它得扩大它的领域，

它要不断地壮大，

that has to grow,

that has to reach out beyond our natural comfort zone,

它得延伸出我们自然舒适区，

one of the challenges to the success of this movement,

这项不使用塑料，帮助经济转型的运动

of getting rid of things like plastic and helping the economy shift,

要成功，所面临的挑战之一

is people look at our movement with some suspicion.

就是人们对待我们的运动有些怀疑。

他们会问一个问题，问题是：

And they ask a question, and the question is:

How can these people be so passionate?

这些人怎么会这么有激情呢？

A poor person, a low-income person, somebody in Cancer Alley,

一个穷人，一个低收入的人，一些来自“癌症街区”的人，

somebody in Watts,

一些来自沃茨Watts的人（美国加利福尼亚州洛杉矶市一区。1965年是严重种族紧张和暴力地区）

somebody in Harlem, somebody on an Indian reservation,

一些来自哈莱姆区的人，一些来自印第安人保留区的人，

might say to themselves -- and rightfully so --

他们可能会理所当然地问自己：

“这些人怎么会如此有激情地

"How can these people be so passionate

确信

about making sure

that a plastic bottle has a second chance in life,

一个塑料瓶

有第二次生命，

or an aluminum can has a second chance,

或者一个铝罐会被第二次使用，

还有，当我的孩子陷入麻烦

and yet, when my child gets in trouble and goes to prison,

进了监狱，

he doesn't get a second chance?"

它是否还会得到第二次机会？”

"How can this movement be so passionate about saying

这次运动何以会如此有激情地

说我们不会有要丢弃的东西，不会有要丢弃的无生命的材料，

we don't have throwaway stuff, no throwaway dead materials,

and yet accept throwaway lives

还有接受

被弃之不顾的生命和被漠不关心的社区，像“癌症街区”那样的社区？

and throwaway communities like Cancer Alley?"

因此我们现在有机会

And so, we now get a chance to be truly proud of this movement.

为这运动真心感到骄傲。

When we take on topics like this,

当我们谈到这话题，

it gives us that extra call to reach out to other movements

它会带给我们特别的召唤

去延伸到其他的运动，

变得更具包容性和不断壮大。

and to become more inclusive and to grow,

and we can finally get out of this crazy dilemma that we've been in.

最终我们可以从我们所处的这种疯狂的困境中摆脱出来。

Most of you are good, softhearted people.

你们中的多数人是好人，软心肠的人。

当你比较年轻时，你关心整个世界，

When you were younger, you cared about the whole world,

在某一时刻

and at some point, somebody said you had to pick an issue,

有人对你说你得选一件事去做，

你得为某件事付出你的真心。

you had to boil your love down to an issue.

你无法热爱真个世界

"Can't love the whole world --

你要么参与到植树的工作中，

you've got to work on trees or you've got to work on immigration.

要么参与到移民的工作中。

You've got to shrink it down and be about one issue."

你得二选一，关注一件事。

And really, they fundamentally told you,

真的，他们基本上会告诉你，

"Are you going to hug a tree?

“你要一棵树，

Or are you going to hug a child? Pick.

还是要拥抱一个孩子？请做选择。

Are you going to hug a tree?

你要一棵树，

Or are you going to hug a child? Pick."

还是要拥抱一个孩子？请做选择。”

Well, when you start working on issues like plastic,

那么，当你开始在塑料问题上工作时，

你意识到所有的事都是连成一体的，

you realize the whole thing is connected.

And luckily, most of us are blessed to have two arms --

幸运得是，我们大多数人都幸运地有2只胳膊。

我们可以兼而有之地做选择。

we can hug both.

Thank you very much.

非常感谢。

(Applause)

(掌声)