TED | 節約用水,迫在眉睫!

2021-02-15 英語口語小鎮

In March 2017, the mayor of Cape Town officially declared Cape Town a local disaster, as it had less than four months left of usable water. Residents were restricted to 100 liters of water per person, per day. 

2017年3月,開普敦市長正式宣布,開普敦是旱情重災區,因為剩餘可用水資源已經不足以維繫四個月的生活。居民每人每天用水量被限制在100升以內。

But what does that really mean? With 100 liters of water per day, you can take a five-minute shower, wash your face twice and probably flush the toilet about five times. You still didn't brush your teeth, you didn't do laundry, and you definitely didn't water your plants.

這意味著什麼呢?每天只有100升水,你可以洗5分鐘的澡,洗兩次臉,大概可以衝五次馬桶。但不夠你刷牙,你也不能洗衣服,當然更不用說澆花了。

You, unfortunately, didn't wash your hands after those five toilet flushes. And you didn't even take a sip of water. The mayor described this as that it means a new relationship with water. Today, seven months later, I can share two things about my second home with you.

並且很不幸,上完那五次廁所你沒有水洗手。你甚至都沒有喝一口水。這就是市長想要表達的意思,人與水的一種新關係。如今,7個月過去了,我想和你們分享兩個我第二個故鄉的故事。

First: Cape Town hasn't run out of water just yet. But as of September 3rd, the hundred-liter limit dropped to 87 liters. The mayor defined the city's new normal as one of permanent drought. Second: what's happening in Cape Town is pretty much coming to many other cities and countries in the world. 

第一:開普敦現在還有水。但是9月3號開始,每天100升水的限量降到了87升。市長宣布久旱會是這個城市的新常態。第二:開普敦的遭遇同時也在其他很多城市上演,甚至是世界上其他國家。

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, excluding countries that we don't have data for, less than five percent of the world's population is living in a country that has more water today than it did 20 years ago. Everyone else is living in a country that has less water today. 

根據聯合國糧食署的數據,除去我們沒有收集到數據的國家,不到百分之五的世界人口所在的國家如今擁有比20年前更多的水資源。其餘國家的水資源都減少了。

And nearly one out of three are living in a country that is facing a water crisis. I grew up in Jordan, a water-poor country that has experienced absolute water scarcity since 1973. And still, in 2017, only 10 countries in the world have less water than Jordan. So dealing with a lack of water is quite ingrained in my soul. 

同時,幾乎三分之一人口所在的國家面臨著水資源危機。我在約旦長大,一個從1973年開始就面臨水資源稀缺的國家。即便在2017年,全世界只有10個國家水資源少於約旦。所以應付缺水是我生活的一部分。

As soon as I was old enough to learn how to write my name, I also learned that I need to conserve water. My parents would constantly remind my siblings and I to close the tap when we brushed our teeth. We used to fill balloons with flour instead of water when we played. It's just as much fun, though.

從我會寫名字開始,我就意識到我要節約用水。我父母會不斷提醒我和兄弟姐妹在刷牙的時候關掉水龍頭。玩耍時,我們灌到氣球裡 的是麵粉而不是水。當然也很有意思。

And a few years ago, when my friends and I were dared to do the Ice Bucket Challenge, we did that with sand. And you might think that, you know, that's easy, sand is not ice cold. I promise you, sand goes everywhere, and it took ages to get rid of it.

幾年前,我和朋友們接受了冰桶挑戰,但用的是沙子。你們可能會覺得那很容易,沙子一點也不冰。但是沙子撒的到處都是,而且要花很長時間清理。

But what perhaps I didn't realize as I played with flour balloons as a child, and as I poured sand on my head as an adult, is that some of the techniques that seem second nature to me and to others who live in dry countries might help us all address what is fast becoming a global crisis. 

但是或許我沒注意到,當我小時候玩麵粉氣球時,當我長大把沙子倒在 頭上時,這些行為似乎是我的天性,乾旱地區人民共有的天性,這或許可以幫我們應對即將到來的全球水資源危機。

I wish to share three lessons today, three lessons from water-poor countries and how they survived and even thrived despite their water crisis. Lesson one: tell people how much water they really have. In order to solve a problem, we need to acknowledge that we have one. 

我今天想和大家分享三個經驗,三個來自缺水國家的經驗,以及他們是如何在水資源危機中存活下來的。第一個經驗:讓人們知道他們實際擁有多少水。要解決問題,我們首先需要認識到我們面臨著一個問題。

And when it comes to water, people can easily turn a blind eye, pretending that since water is coming out of the tap now, everything will be fine forever. But some smart, drought-affected countries have adopted simple, innovative measures to make sure their citizens, their communities and their companies know just how dry their countries are.

當涉及到水資源時,人們經常欺騙自己,假裝只要水管中還有水,就萬事大吉了。但是一些遭受乾旱,卻機智的國家採取了一些簡單新穎的方法,讓市民,社區和公司認識到了他們的國家有多麼的缺水。

When I was in Cape Town earlier this year, I saw this electronic billboard on the freeway, indicating how much water the city had left. This is an idea they may well have borrowed from Australia when it faced one of the worst droughts of the country's history from 1997 to 2009. Water levels in Melbourne dropped to a very low capacity of almost 26 percent. But the city didn't yell at people.

今年早些時候,我在高速上看到了一個電子廣告牌,寫著這個城市還剩多少水。這個方法可能是向澳大利亞借鑑的,從1997到2009年,澳洲一直面臨著史上最嚴重的乾旱。當時墨爾本的水位降到最低谷,差不多只有正常水平的26%。但政府沒有控訴市民。

It didn't plead with them not to use water. They used electronic billboards to flash available levels of water to all citizens across the city. They were honestly telling people how much water they really have, and letting them take responsibility for themselves. By the end of the drought, this created such a sense of urgency as well as a sense of community. 

沒有懇請他們不要用水。他們通過電子廣告牌來展示剩餘可用水量,告訴所有市民,他們坦誠地告訴市民剩餘的水量,讓他們為自己負責。在乾旱結束時,這給人們帶來了一種緊迫感,讓人們更加團結。

Nearly one out of three citizens in Melbourne had invested in installing rainwater holding tanks for their own households. Actions that citizens took didn't stop at installing those tanks. With help from the city, they were able to do something even more impactful. Taking me to lesson two: empower people to save water. 

幾乎三分之一的墨爾本市民在家裡安裝了存儲雨水的裝置。市民所採取的措施遠不止於安裝了這些裝置。在政府的幫助下他們能做一些更有意義的事情。第二個經驗:讓人們節約用水。

Melbourne wanted people to spend less water in their homes. And one way to do that is to spend less time in the shower. However, interviews revealed that some people, women in particular, weren't keen on saving water that way. Some of them honestly said, "The shower is not just to clean up. It's my sanctuary. 

墨爾本政府希望人們在家裡減少用水。其中一種方式就是縮短洗澡的時間。然而調查發現,有些人,尤其是女性,不願意在這方面減少用水。有些人坦言,「洗澡不單單是為了清潔。這是我的私密空間。

It's a space I go to relax, not just clean up." So the city started offering water-efficient showerheads for free. And then, now some people complained that the showerheads looked ugly or didn't suit their bathrooms. So what I like to call "The Showerhead Team" developed a small water-flow regulator that can be fitted into existing showerheads. 

一個不僅僅提供清潔,更是讓我放鬆的地方。」於是政府開始免費提供節水花灑。然而一些人抱怨那個花灑有點醜,或者不適用於他們的浴室。好在「花灑小隊」發明了一種小型流量調節器,可以安裝在現有的花灑中。

And although showerhead beauty doesn't matter much to me, I loved how the team didn't give up and instead came up with a simple, unique solution to empower people to save water. Within a span of four years, more than 460,000 showerheads were replaced. When the small regulator was introduced, more than 100,000 orders of that were done. 

儘管我不怎麼在乎花灑的外觀,但我很欣賞這個團隊的堅持,並想出了一個簡單獨特的解決方案來幫助人們節水。在四年的時間裡,人們更換了46萬個花灑。當流量調節器推出之後,銷量超過10萬。

Melbourne succeeded in reducing the water demands per capita by 50 percent. In the United Arab Emirates, the second-most water-scarce country in the world, officials designed what they called the "Business Heroes Toolkit" in 2010. The aim was to motivate and empower businesses to reduce water and energy consumption. 

墨爾本成功將人均用水量降低了50%。在阿聯,世界第二大缺水國家,2010年,官方發明了「商業英雄工具包」。為了激勵企業減少水和能源的消耗。

The toolkit practically taught companies how to measure their existing water-consumption levels and consisted of tips to help them reduce those levels. And it worked. Hundreds of organizations downloaded the toolkit.

這個工具包會指導公司如何測量他們現有的用水量,同時提供一些減少用水的方法。這個方法奏效了,上百個組織下載了這個工具包。

And several of them joined what they called the "Corporate Heroes Network," where companies can voluntarily take on a challenge to reduce their water-consumption levels to preset targets within a period of one year. Companies which completed the challenge saved on average 35 percent of water.

很多組織還參加了「企業英雄網絡」,在這個平臺上,公司可以自願參加一些挑戰,比如在一年之內,將其用水量降至預設目標。完成這些挑戰的公司平均節水量達到了35%。

And one company, for example, implemented as many water-saving tips as they could in their office space. They replaced their toilet-flushing techniques, taps, showerheads -- you name it. If it saved water, they replaced it, eventually reducing their employees' water consumption by half.

比如,其中一個公司在辦公區部署了各種節水設施。他們更新了衝廁技術,水龍頭,花灑等等——你能想到的都有。只要能節水,他們就替換最終員工用水量節省了一半。

Empowering individuals and companies to save water is so critical, yet not sufficient. Countries need to look beyond the status quo and implement country-level actions to save water. Taking me to lesson three: look below the surface. Water savings can come from unexpected places. 

個人和公司是節水的主力軍,但是還不夠。國家應該目光長遠,並採取國家層面的行動來節約水資源。這引出了第三個經驗:透過表面看本質。我們可以在很多意想不到的地方節水。

Singapore is the eighth most water-scarce country in the world. It depends on imported water for almost 60 percent of its water needs. It's also a very small island. As such, it needs to make use of as much space as possible to catch rainfall. So in 2008, they built the Marina Barrage.

新加坡是世界第八大缺水國家,幾乎60%的用水依賴進口。新加坡是一個很小的島國。出於這些原因它需要儘可能地收集並存儲雨水。在2008年,他們建造了濱海堰壩。

It's the first-ever urban water reservoir built in the middle of the city-state. It's the largest water catchment in the country, almost one-sixth the size of Singapore. What's so amazing about the Marina Barrage is that it has been built to make the maximum use of its large size and its unexpected yet important location. 

這是有史以來第一個建在城中央的水庫,是新加坡最大的集水池,幾乎佔了新加坡六分之一的面積。關於濱海堰壩最神奇的一點在於它最大限度利用了所有空間,以及它意想不到的重要位置。

It brings three valuable benefits to the country: it has boosted Singapore's water supply by 10 percent; it protects low areas around it from floods because of its connection to the sea; and, as you can see, it acts as a beautiful lifestyle attraction, hosting several events, from art exhibitions to music festivals, attracting joggers, bikers, tourists all around that area.

它為新加坡帶來了三個好處。它將新加坡的供水量提高了10%;它使低海拔地區免受洪水危及,因為它連著海,同時,正如你所看到的,它也是一個美麗的景點。這裡舉辦過各式各樣的活動,從藝術展到音樂嘉年華,吸引了周圍居民來慢跑,騎行和旅遊。

Now, not all initiatives need to be stunning or even visible. My first home, Jordan, realized that agriculture is consuming the majority of its fresh water. They really wanted to encourage farmers to focus on growing low water-intensive crops. To achieve that, the local agriculture is increasing its focus on date palms and grapevines. 

然而,並非所有倡議都令人嘆服或者可見。我的故鄉約旦意識到農業消耗了大部分的淡水資源。他們很想鼓勵農民集中耕種低耗水量的作物。為了達到這個目的當地農業正轉型增產椰子和葡萄藤。

Those two are much more tolerant to drought conditions than many other fruits and vegetables, and at the same time, they are considered high-value crops, both locally and internationally. Locals in Namibia, one of the most arid countries in Southern Africa, have been drinking recycled water since 1968. Now, you may tell me many countries recycle water. 

因為這兩種植物相較於其他蔬果而言更耐旱,同時,無論是在當地還是國際上,它們都是高價值作物。在納米比亞,非洲南部最乾旱的國家之一,從1968年起,當地人就開始飲用再生水。你也許會說,如今很多國家都回收利用水。

I would say yes. But very few use it for drinking purposes, mostly because people don't like the thought of water that was in their toilets going to their taps. But Namibia could not afford to think that way. They looked below the surface to save water. 

確實如此。但是少有國家將其用作飲用水,大多是因為人們不願意接受自來水管裡流的是衝過馬桶的水。但是納米比亞卻沒有資本這麼想。

They are now a great example of how, when countries purify waste water to drinking standards, they can ease their water shortages, and in Namibia's case, provide drinking water for more than 300,000 citizens in its capital city.

他們做到了實質上的節水。如今,他們是將水淨化到可飲用標準的典範,他們緩解了餓水資源的緊缺。納米比亞通過這種方法為該國首都三十多萬的市民提供了飲用水。

As more countries which used to be more water rich are becoming water scarce, I say we don't need to reinvent the wheel. If we just look at what water-poor countries have done, the solutions are out there. Now it's really just up to all of us to take action. 

越來越多國家雖然過去擁有充沛的水資源,但開始逐漸陷入缺水困境,我們不必重蹈覆轍。只要我們借鑑那些缺水國家的做法,答案自在眼前。現在,我們只需要開始採取行動。

Thank you.

謝謝。

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  • English Version: Save Water, Save the Planet | 拯救地球, 節約用水
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