To save the climate, we have to reimagine capitalism | Rebecca Henderson

Transcriber: TED Translators Admin Reviewer: Rhonda Jacobs

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Amanda Zhu

I am a tree hugger.

我是個抱樹人（環保人士）。

I spent much of my childhood

我童年總是待在

on the great lower limb of a massive copper beech,

一棵紫葉歐洲山毛櫸底下的主枝上，

alternately reading and looking up at the sky through its branches.

一會兒閱讀，一會兒抬頭 從樹枝間看向天空。

I felt safe and cared for

我感到安全、被照顧著，

and connected to something infinitely larger than myself.

且和某種比我更偉大的 存在連結在一起。

I thought the trees were immortal, that they would always be here.

我以為樹木是不朽的， 永遠都會在那裡。

But I was wrong.

但我錯了。

The trees are dying.

樹木正在不斷死亡。

Climate change is killing the cedars of Lebanon

氣候變遷正在殺害黎巴嫩的西洋杉

and the forests of the American West.

以及美國西部的森林。

And it's not just the trees.

且不只是樹木。

Since 1998, extreme heat has killed more than 160,000 people,

1998 年起，

極高溫就造成了十六萬人死亡，

and unchecked climate change could kill millions more.

如果氣候變遷不受控制， 還會再造成數百萬人死亡。

How did we get here?

我們怎麼會走到這一步？

There are many reasons, of course,

當然有很多原因，

but one of the most important

但最重要的原因之一，

is that we let capitalism morph into something monstrous.

就是我們讓資本主義變身成大怪物。

I'm a huge fan of capitalism at its best.

我很崇尚完美運作的資本主義。

After all, I'm an economist and a business school professor.

畢竟，我是經濟學家及商學院教授。

I think genuinely free and fair markets

我認為真正自由公平的市場

are one of the great inventions of the human race.

是人類最偉大的發明之一。

But here's the catch:

但有個問題，

markets only work their magic when prices reflect real costs.

唯有在價格反映出真正的成本時，

市場才能發揮它的功力。

And right now, prices are badly out of whack.

而目前，價格非常不相稱。

We're letting the firms who sell fossil fuels,

我們容許販售化石燃料的公司

and indeed anyone who emits greenhouse gases,

以及排放溫室氣體的任何人

cause enormous damage for which they do not have to pay.

招致巨大的損害， 卻不用為此付出代價。

And that is hardly fair.

那實在說不上是公平。

Imagine for a moment

想像一下，

that my hands are filled with a cloud of electrons,

我的手上有一團電子雲，

10 dollars' worth of coal-fired electricity

燃煤發電產生的電力，價值十美金，

that could power your cell phone for more than 10 years.

能供電給你的手機長達十年。

That probably sounds like a pretty good deal.

聽起來是個挺好的交易。

But it's only so cheap

但它之所以這麼便宜，

because you're not paying for the harm that it causes.

是因為你不用為 它所造成的傷害付費。

Burning coal sends poisons like mercury and lead into the air,

燃燒煤碳會將汞和鉛 這些有毒物質排放到空氣中，

increasing healthcare costs by billions of dollars

導致健康照護的成本 增加數十億美金，

and causing the death

且每年還會造成數十萬人死亡。

of hundreds of thousands of people every year.

It also emits huge quantities of carbon dioxide.

燃燒煤碳也會釋放大量的二氧化碳。

So another part of the real cost of coal

所以，煤碳的真實成本當中有一部分

is the climate damage it will cause and is already causing.

就是它將會也已經造成的氣候破壞。

More than a million acres burned in California this summer,

今年夏天，加州有超過 一百萬英畝的地被燒光，

and massive floods put a third of Bangladesh under water.

孟加拉共和國有三分之一 國土被大洪水淹沒。

Hundreds of studies have tried to put a number on these costs.

有數百個研究計畫 都在嘗試估算這些成本。

My sense of this work,

我的判斷是，

and here I'm relying on my colleagues in the School of Public Health

且這是仰賴我在公共健康學院的同事

及經濟學的朋友所做的判斷，

and my friends in economics,

is that generating 10 dollars' worth of coal-fired electricity

我認為產生出價值十美金的燃煤電力

causes at least eight dollars' worth of harm to human health

會對人類健康造成 至少價值八美金的傷害，

and at least another eight dollars' worth of climate damage

另外還會造成至少 八美金的氣候損害，

and probably much more.

可能還更多許多。

So the true cost of this handful of electrons?

所以，我手上這些電子的 真正成本是多少？

It's not 10 dollars.

不是十美金。

It's something more like 26.

比較可能是二十六美金。

The hidden costs of doing things like burning oil and gas

其他活動，如燃燒石油 和天然氣以及吃牛肉，

and eating beef are similarly enormous and just as unfair.

背後隱藏的成本 也同樣巨大且同樣不公平。

Everyone who's trying to build a clean economy

所有試圖努力打造乾淨經濟的人

has to compete with firms that are heavily subsidized

都得和這些破壞我們的健康和氣候

by the destruction of our health and the degradation of our climate.

來獲益的公司競爭，

This is not the capitalism I signed up for.

這不是我支持的那種資本主義。

This is not a market that is either free or fair.

這個市場既不自由又不公平。

So ...

所以……

What do we do?

我們能怎麼做？

The "easy" answer is that governments should insist

「簡單」的答案是政府應該要堅持

that anyone who emits greenhouse gases pay for the damage that they cause.

排放溫室氣體的人就一定要 為他們所造成的損害付出代價。

However, at the moment,

然而，目前看不出 政府有這麼做的打算，

there's not much sign that governments are up for this,

partly because the fossil fuel companies have spent the last 20 years

有部分原因是化石燃料公司 在過去二十年間

using their heavily subsidized profits

把他們賺來的大量利潤

to deny the reality of climate change

用在否認氣候變遷的事實，

and to shower the politicians,

並用錢收買應該要管制他們的政客。

who should be regulating them, with money.

So here's my crazy idea.

所以我有個瘋狂的點子。

I think business should step up.

我認為企業應該站出來。

I think business should fix capitalism.

我認為企業應該要修復資本主義。

I know. (Laughs)

我知道。（笑）

Some of you are probably thinking, "Fat chance."

有人可能在想：「最好有可能啦！」

Didn't I just say that companies are the ones denying the science,

我剛不是說過公司會否認科學、

distorting the market and lobbying the politicians?

扭曲市場、遊說政客嗎？

I did.

我說過。

But fixing this is squarely in the private sector's interest.

但處理這個問題也正好 和私人企業的利益有關。

The truth is business is screwed if we don't fix climate change.

事實是，

如果我們不處理好 氣候變遷，企業就完蛋了。

It's going to be hard to make money

將來會很難賺錢，

when the great coastal cities are under water

因為海岸的大城市會在水底，

and millions of angry people are migrating north as the harvests fail.

還有數百萬憤怒的人在作物 歉收的情況下向北遷徙。

It's going to be tough to keep free enterprise alive

自由企業會很難繼續生存，

if most people believe the rich and the white

因為大家相信是有錢人和白人

are using it to trash the planet for their own benefit.

為了自己的利益而毀了地球。

So let me tell you what this looks like on the ground.

所以讓我來告訴各位， 這個點子要如何實際運用。

My friend Erik Osmundsen left a cushy job in private equity

我的朋友艾瑞克奧斯蒙森 放棄了私人股權投資的輕鬆工作，

to become the CEO of a garbage company.

成為垃圾公司的執行長。

That sounds like a slightly odd idea.

這聽起來是個奇怪的想法。

But Erik wanted to make a difference,

但艾瑞克想要有所作為，

and changing the way that trash is handled

改變處理垃圾的方式

could reduce emissions by billions of tons.

能夠減少數十億公噸的排放。

Right away, he ran into a massive problem:

他馬上就遇到了一個大問題：

the industry was thoroughly corrupt.

這個產業完全腐敗了。

Firms were cutting costs by dumping waste illegally,

公司會違法丟棄廢棄物來減少成本，

the regulations were poorly enforced

規定也沒有確實執行，

and the fines for violation were tiny.

且違法的罰金非常低。

Erik announced he was going to run clean

艾瑞克宣佈，他要 採用乾淨的方式營運，

and to raise prices to cover the costs of doing so.

並提高價格， 才能負擔相對應的成本。

Many of his senior team thought he was crazy.

他的資深團隊成員多半認為他瘋了。

Half of them quit.

有一半的人辭職。

So did many of his customers.

他的許多客戶也離開了。

His competitors denounced him for bringing the industry into disrepute,

他的競爭對手指責他 破壞這個產業的聲譽，

and he started to receive personal threats.

他還開始收到針對他個人的恐嚇。

But corruption works best when it's hidden.

但腐敗要在背地裡才行得通。

As soon as Erik went public, people started to step up.

當艾瑞克公開之後，開始有人站出來，

A few customers were willing to pay more.

少數客戶願意付更高的價格。

His investors agreed that taking the high road could pay off.

他的投資者認同採取 積極的態度有可能會成功。

Those of his employees who remained loved the idea of taking a stand

他公司裡留下的員工 喜愛他採取堅定立場的做法，

and found all kinds of legal ways to cut costs.

努力去找各種合法的 方式來降低成本。

Erik persuaded several of his competitors

艾瑞克說服了幾位競爭者加入他，

to join him in refusing to dispose of garbage illegally,

拒絕以非法方式處理廢棄物，

and it got much tougher for regulators to stay on the sidelines.

而管理機關也更難袖手旁觀。

Today, Erik's company, Norsk Gjenvinning,

現今，艾瑞克的公司 Norsk Gjenvinning

is one of the largest recycling companies in Scandinavia.

是斯堪地那維亞 最大的回收公司之一。

Let me generalize.

讓我歸納一下。

These are the four pillars of change:

改革有四根支柱：

Build a business that can set the right price

創建一家能公平定價的企業，

and still be profitable.

且還要能獲利。

Persuade your competitors to do the same thing.

說服你的競爭者跟進。

Make sure that investors understand there's money to be made.

確保投資者了解會有錢可賺。

And push governments to put the right price into law

敦促政府將公平價格納入到法律中，

so that bottom-feeders can't survive.

讓行為可鄙者無法生存。

I'm not telling you we've got this nailed.

我並不是說我們已經搞定了。

Things are pretty desperate.

情況十分危急。

But there are thousands of businesspeople like Erik,

但有數千名像艾瑞克這樣的商人，

and there are millions of people like us.

還有數百萬名像我們這樣的人。

And we are customers, employees, investors and citizens.

我們代表的是客戶、員工、

投資者以及公民。

Instead of giving up on capitalism, let's fix it

別放棄資本主義，咱們來把它修復，

by making sure that markets are truly fair and truly free,

要做的是確保市場 能真正公平、真正自由，

and that no one can dump garbage on us

且沒有人能把垃圾往我們身上倒

and walk away without paying for it.

而不用付出代價。

We have the resources and the technology to solve climate change.

我們有解決氣候變遷 所必要的資源和科技。

Together, we can save the trees

同心協力，我們就能拯救樹木

and each other.

以及彼此。

Thank you.

謝謝。