小李子在联合国国际和平日纪念活动上的演讲(视频+文本)
Thank you, Mr. Douglas, for your commitment as a Messenger of Peace. I'm honored to stand here this afternoon alongside the great Ban Ki-moon, my fellow Messengers of Peace and all of you together on this International Day of Peace.
The word "peace" has many possible meanings, andthe Messenger of Peace p rogram has been vital toaddressing some of the most pressing challenges of our time head-on –poverty, disease, humansuffering – issues which defy th e very concept ofpeace.
For the past two years, as your Messenger of Peace for climate change, I hav e witnessedunimaginable human-caused devastation across our planet. With the potential of hundreds ofmillions of climate refugees, this could be a futur e that will be anything but peaceful.
When I began this journey at the request of the Secretary-General, I feared that it was alreadytoo late to stop the droughts, the floods, the famine and t he devastation of everything fromancient rainforest to timeless coral reefs. Si nce then, I have recorded the impacts of climatechange for this new docume ntary that you just saw the preview– Before the Flood. Andwhat I witnesse d firsthand and you will all see in the movie should terrify you. But it shoulda lso give you hope that the solutions are available and are available today if we begin to makereal progress right now, which raises the question: How coul d mankind wait so long and acceptso much suffering and self-destruction? W ould we ever be wise enough to stop these forcesof greed for fossil fuel profit s to finally bring lasting peace and protection to our shared planet?
Then last December in Paris, the world was hopeful that the answer would be yes. Almost 200nations came together for the first time in two decades, and r eached what amounts to a PeaceAgreement. It was a global consensus for t ackling climate change, achieved, in large measure,thanks to the tireless eff orts of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Let's give him a round of applause. T o be sure, this deal is only the beginning, but how else could we stop the dest ruction of planet Earth? Except by building a global coalition and all workin g together.Coalitions like the Secretary General's Cities Climate Finance Leade rship Alliance – a group ofover 50 UN development agencies, financial instituti ons from all corners of the globe and NGOsled by the R20
– Regions of Climate Action. Alliances like these can turn the pledges of Parisi nto solar and wind power plants, and to clean transportation systems, and t
o ending the concept of wastes, and to a global economy that is sustainable for generations to come.Massive new infrastructure like that, thanks in large p art to the Paris Agreement, will get ushalfway there, halfway to the necessary reduction of greenhouse gases and begin ameaningful shift of our global economy away from fossil fuels to clean renewable energy, and efficient use of our precious resources.
The rest is up to all of us. Yes! Each of us must play a part in holding our lead ers accountablefor their Paris promises and persuading them to finish the job. We must educate ourselvesabout the problem, speak up on behalf of the solu tions, and most importantly, vote for leaderswho respond before it is too late for things like ending tax breaks for fossil fuels, putting aprice on carbon, an d a rapid transition to a 100 percent renewable energy. We can use ourpurch asing power to support companies that understand the same thing and deliv ersustainable low-carbon products and services to the world. We can support and volunteer for community organizations that are helping us to adapt to s ome of the harsh realities thatclimate change is already reeking on our ocean s, our cities, our farms, our health and thenatural world all around us.
We have waited too long and are already suffering the consequences. But I've also seen theseeds of peace and the solutions to climate change – ideas and innovation planted in theminds of schoolchildren, world leaders, entrepreneu rs, faith leaders, mothers and fathers. It isin that awareness and willingnes s to take action that we must place our faith and hopes inthe future.
So, my friends, my message to you today can be summed up by another Mes senger of Peace, agreat Mahatma Gandhi, who said,
"A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchablefaith in their mi ssion can alter the course of history." Let today be the day we all come beco me determined spirits together. I have faith that we can alter the course of o ur planet's historybefore it is too late. But it is up to all of us.