TED: How to solve food and climate challenges

It might surprise you to learn that the food we eat and the farms that grow it and the landscapes we've cleared all contribute to climate change and contribute in a really, really big way. Our job today is to figure out what we can actually do about it. Well, this is also kind of a tricky topic, in part because there are just so many variables at work and so many processes, but also it's a place of a lot of confusion and misinformation. 

你可能会惊讶地发现，我们吃的食物、种植食物的农场以及我们开垦的土地都对气候变化有影响，而且影响非常、非常大。我们今天的任务是找出我们究竟能做些什么。嗯，这也是一个相当棘手的话题，部分原因是有太多的变量在起作用，也有太多的过程，但它也是一个充满困惑和错误信息的地方。

So how are we going to move forward together and try to figure out something with clarity? Well, to do that, I like to listen to the data and see what it tells us and see what we can learn from it. And the first thing the data tells us about our food system is that it's really, really big. So let's take a look at this. 

那么，我们将如何共同前进，并试图找到清晰的解决方案呢？嗯，要做到这一点，我喜欢倾听数据，看看它告诉我们什么，看看我们能从中了解到什么。关于我们的食物系统，数据告诉我们的第一件事是，它真的非常非常大。让我们来看看这个。

This is the land that we use on Earth just to grow our crops here in green. Here's the land we use to graze our animals here in red. Together, that's a huge amount of land. 

这是我们在地球上仅仅用来种植庄稼的土地，用绿色表示。这是我们用来放牧的土地，用红色表示。加在一起，这是一块巨大的土地。

It's about 38 percent of all the land there is on Earth. To put that in perspective, all the cities and suburbs on Earth cover less than one percent of Earth's land. This is 38. 

它大约占地球陆地总面积的 38%。相比之下，地球上所有的城市和郊区加起来还不到地球陆地面积的 1%。这是 38%。

Now, of this 38, 29 of it is used for animals, either to graze or to grow animal feed. So we have a huge footprint of agriculture and a lot of it is devoted to the animal part of our agricultural systems. So food dominates our planet and animals dominate the food system today. 

在这 38% 中，有 29% 用于动物，要么是放牧，要么是种植动物饲料。因此，我们的农业足迹巨大，其中很大一部分用于农业系统中的动物部分。因此，食物主宰着我们的星球，而动物则主宰着当今的食物系统。

That's just data. That's just the truth. So what does this mean? It means that there's some massive environmental impacts just from the sheer real estate of our food system. 

这只是数据。这就是事实。那么这意味着什么呢？这意味着仅仅从我们食物系统的绝对规模来看，就会对环境产生巨大的影响。

And we have to acknowledge that, whether it's the role of agriculture in driving biodiversity loss or water pollution or degrading ecosystems all over the world, it has a huge footprint. And that footprint doesn't end just on land or in water. It extends all the way to the atmosphere and our climate system. 

我们必须承认，无论是农业在推动生物多样性丧失、水污染还是全球生态系统退化方面的作用，它都留下了巨大的足迹。而且，这个足迹并不仅仅局限于陆地或水中。它一直延伸到大气层和我们的气候系统。

In fact, if you look at the emissions data from the IPCC, we find that agriculture, land use and the food system as a whole contribute about 22 percent of global emissions. That's comparable to the emissions from electricity or from industry. So this is a pretty big player. 

事实上，如果我们看一下 IPCC 的排放数据，就会发现农业、土地利用和整个食品系统约占全球排放量的 22%。这与电力或工业的排放量相当。因此，这是一个相当大的参与者。

Let's look under the hood and see what's involved in this. Of this 22 percent of greenhouse gas emissions coming from the food system, there are four big players. The first is deforestation. 

让我们深入了解一下这其中涉及的内容。在这 22% 来自食品系统的温室气体排放中，有四大参与者。首先是森林砍伐。

That's about half of all those food emissions at 11 percent of global emissions. Eleven percent. That's a pretty big deal. 

这大约占所有食品排放量的一半，占全球排放量的 11%。百分之十一。这是一个相当大的数字。

To put that in perspective, the entire U.S. economy emits 10 to 11 percent. Deforestation is even bigger. And we don't talk about this nearly enough. 

相比之下，整个美国经济的排放量为 10% 到 11%。森林砍伐的规模甚至更大。而我们对此谈论得还远远不够。

Second is methane from livestock. Now, we hear a lot of jokes about what cows do and all that kind of thing. But the science is actually really clear. 

其次是牲畜产生的甲烷。现在，我们听到了很多关于奶牛做什么的玩笑，以及诸如此类的事情。但科学实际上是非常清楚的。

Livestock are a huge emitter of methane, and methane is a very big driver of climate change. And we have to make that connection. Third is basically industrial farming methods, especially overusing chemicals like fertilizers and treating soil really badly. 

牲畜是甲烷的巨大排放源，而甲烷是气候变化的一个非常大的驱动因素。我们必须将两者联系起来。第三基本上是工业化农业方法，特别是过度使用化肥等化学物质和对土壤的严重破坏。

We have to think about that too. And then finally, we have rice production, another methane producer at around 2 percent. That's also going to be really important. 

我们也必须考虑到这一点。最后，还有水稻生产，这也是一个甲烷排放源，约占 2%。这也很重要。

So to first order, all of those emissions, those 22 percent, come from just those four things. Deforestation, livestock, industrial farming methods, and rice. So we're going to have to look at all those in some detail. 

因此，首先，所有这些排放，也就是那 22%，都来自这四样东西。森林砍伐、牲畜、工业化农业方法和水稻。因此，我们将不得不详细研究所有这些问题。

But that's not all. Beyond these direct emissions of food, that 22 percent, there are some indirect ways the food system emits greenhouse gas as well. For example, discarded food might end up in a landfill somewhere, rotting and producing methane. 

但这还不是全部。除了食品的这些直接排放，即 22% 之外，食品系统还有一些间接排放温室气体的方式。例如，被丢弃的食物最终可能会进入某个垃圾填埋场，腐烂并产生甲烷。

And that's counted over here in the industry column. And then we have to think about all the energy and materials it takes to grow food, and then later to process, transport, package, and prepare it. That's counted elsewhere in the food system as well. 

这在工业栏中有所体现。然后，我们还必须考虑种植粮食所需的全部能源和材料，以及随后加工、运输、包装和准备粮食所需的能源和材料。这在食品系统的其他地方也有所体现。

So when we look at these data, it tells us that, yes, food releases 22 percent of greenhouse gases directly. But when we add all the other sources, it grows to something like 34 percent. Roughly a third of all the greenhouse gases on Earth. 

因此，当我们查看这些数据时，它告诉我们，是的，食品直接排放的温室气体占 22%。但当我们把所有其他来源加起来时，这个数字就增长到了 34% 左右。大约占地球上所有温室气体的三分之一。

So that means it's a third of the climate problem. In other words, we cannot solve climate change unless we also address the problems of food alongside fossil fuels and energy. So that's why we're here today, to talk about why food and climate are so connected. 

所以这意味着它是气候问题的三分之一。换句话说，除非我们除了化石燃料和能源之外，还解决食品问题，否则我们就无法解决气候变化问题。所以，这就是我们今天来到这里的原因，我们要谈谈为什么食品和气候如此息息相关。

So we have a problem, and that problem is getting bigger, because the emissions of food are rising. Even in countries like the United States, where emissions of other greenhouse gases are going down. In the U.S., emissions of electricity are going down. 

所以我们遇到了一个问题，而且这个问题越来越严重，因为食品的排放量正在上升。即使在像美国这样其他温室气体排放量正在下降的国家也是如此。在美国，电力行业的排放量正在下降。

In industry, they're going down. They're beginning to go down in buildings and transportation, but not in food. They're still going up. 

在工业领域，它们正在下降。在建筑和交通运输领域，它们也开始下降，但在食品领域却没有。它们仍在上升。

And that's true throughout the world. This is the most stubborn and difficult part of the whole climate puzzle. So we need to really take this seriously. 

全世界都是如此。这是整个气候难题中最顽固、最困难的部分。因此，我们需要认真对待这个问题。

So basically, we have a crisis in food and climate, because it's a huge emitter of greenhouse gases, it's getting worse, and it's a problem where there's a lot of confusion and kind of misinformation flowing around, and we don't often know what to do. So this is where we need a plan. We need a science-based plan that helps us move forward through the challenge of food and climate change. 

所以，从根本上说，我们在食品和气候方面正面临着一场危机，因为它是一个巨大的温室气体排放源，而且情况还在恶化，这是一个充满困惑和各种错误信息的问题，我们常常不知道该怎么做。因此，我们需要一个计划。我们需要一个以科学为基础的计划，帮助我们应对食品和气候变化的挑战。

Well, what's the first step of the plan? The first step of the plan, always in climate change, is to cut the emissions. Always. Whether it's electricity or industry or transportation, you always start by cutting the primary pollution. 

那么，计划的第一步是什么？应对气候变化，计划的第一步始终是减排。始终如此。无论是电力、工业还是交通运输，都要从减少主要污染开始。

Why? Well, one analogy we often use is a bathtub. If a bathtub's overflowing and pouring out of the floor or damaging your house, what's the first thing you do? You turn off the faucet. Then you go look for the sponge to clean up the rest of the water. 

为什么？我们经常用浴缸来打比方。如果浴缸里的水溢出来了，流到了地板上，或者损坏了你的房子，你首先要做什么？关掉水龙头。然后你去找海绵来清理剩下的水。

So let's turn off the faucet of pollution and turn down these huge sources. To do that, there are four key pillars we can follow to do it. The first is to be more efficient. 

因此，让我们关掉污染的 "水龙头"，减少这些巨大的污染源。为此，我们可以遵循四个关键支柱。首先是提高效率。

Just like insulating buildings or driving hybrid cars, efficiency is a good place to start. So within the food system, we have a lot of opportunities for efficiency, especially by cutting food waste and food loss. And there's astonishing numbers here. 

就像房屋隔热或驾驶混合动力汽车一样，提高效率是一个良好的开端。因此，在食品系统中，我们有很多提高效率的机会，特别是通过减少食品浪费和损失。这里有一些惊人的数字。

It turns out about 30 to 40 percent of all the food grown on Earth is never eaten. So that means that 30 to 40 percent of all the land and water and greenhouse gases it took to grow food weren't even necessary. So cutting food waste turns out to be a big lever in stopping climate change. 

事实证明，地球上大约 30% 到 40% 的粮食从未被食用。这意味着，用于种植粮食的土地、水和温室气体中有 30% 到 40% 根本就没有必要。因此，减少食物浪费是阻止气候变化的一个重要杠杆。

We also need to look at diets. Now, this one gets a little bit tricky and people don't like to talk about it, but we're going to need to, because it turns out some foods end up emitting a lot more greenhouse gases than others. Just look at the top things on this list of greenhouse gas emissions per pound of food. 

我们还需要关注饮食。现在，这一点有点棘手，人们也不愿意谈论，但我们需要这样做，因为事实证明，有些食物最终排放的温室气体比其他食物多得多。看看这份按每磅食物计算的温室气体排放量清单上的首位是什么就知道了。

What do they all have in common? They're all animal products. And then look at beef at the top of the list. It's literally off the chart. 

它们的共同点是什么？它们都是动物制品。再看看排在首位的牛肉。它的排放量简直高得离谱。

And it emits a hundred pounds of greenhouse gases for one pound of beef. On average, some of it is even more than that. Now, just stop and think about that for just one second. 

每生产一磅牛肉，就会排放 100 磅温室气体。平均而言，有些牛肉的排放量甚至更高。现在，请停下来想一想。

It turns out a pound of coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel there is, releases about four pounds of CO2. But producing one pound of beef produces a hundred pounds of greenhouse gas. This makes beef the most climate-polluting substance you and I will normally encounter in our lives. 

事实证明，一磅煤（最脏的化石燃料）会释放约 4 磅二氧化碳。但生产一磅牛肉会产生 100 磅温室气体。这使得牛肉成为你我生活中通常会遇到的污染气候最严重的物质。

So this is kind of a big deal, and that's one of the reasons among many that shifting diets towards more plant-rich options is a good idea for climate. Now, it doesn't mean everybody goes vegan tomorrow. Even small targeted changes can make a big, big difference. 

因此，这是一个非常重要的问题，这也是转向以植物为主的饮食对气候有利的众多原因之一。现在，这并不意味着每个人明天都要成为素食主义者。即使是小的、有针对性的改变也能带来巨大的变化。

We also have to think about ways of protecting forests and other ecosystems from being cleared. One of the things we have to be concerned about is commodity agriculture, especially clearing forests for more beef, more soybeans, which are used for animal feed, and palm oil. Those are some of the biggest clearers of tropical rainforest, and we have to look for those all over the world. 

我们还必须考虑如何保护森林和其他生态系统不被砍伐。我们必须关注的一件事是商品农业，特别是为了获得更多牛肉、更多大豆（用于动物饲料）和棕榈油而砍伐森林。这些是热带雨林的最大破坏者，我们必须在全世界范围内关注这些问题。

And there are many ways we can stop deforestation and stop this clearing of forests. We can work with indigenous communities to protect their land into the future. We can clean up global supply chains. 

我们可以通过多种途径阻止森林砍伐和停止这种森林砍伐行为。我们可以与土著社区合作，保护他们的土地，使其世代相传。我们可以清理全球供应链。

We can fix global carbon markets. Many, many things we can do here. We also have to improve farming methods so we don't emit as much from the farmer's field. 

我们可以修复全球碳市场。我们可以在这方面做很多很多事情。我们还必须改进耕作方法，这样农民的田地就不会排放那么多温室气体。

We can blend a lot of different techniques here, whether it borrows from organic agriculture or conventional or precision ag or whatever. We can borrow lots of good ideas and find ways to reduce emissions. One of the things we'll have to do is pay particular attention to fertilizers because they're a big, big polluter, not only to the atmosphere, but also to water. 

我们可以在这里融合许多不同的技术，无论是借鉴有机农业、传统农业还是精准农业，等等。我们可以借鉴许多好主意，找到减少排放的方法。我们必须做的一件事是特别关注化肥，因为它们是巨大的污染源，不仅污染大气，还污染水源。

And some places in the world use way too much fertilizer, more than the crops could ever actually use. And it turns out those areas shown in yellow could dramatically lower their fertilizer use without affecting yields at all and improve emissions greatly. So there's some great opportunities here. 

世界上有些地方过度使用化肥，远远超过了作物实际需要的量。事实证明，图中黄色区域可以大幅减少化肥使用量，而不会影响产量，并能大幅减少排放。因此，这里有一些很好的机会。

And finally, we can fix the rest of the food system, whether it's in transportation, refrigeration, packaging, cooking food, all of that. And together we have a whole system of solutions that improves efficiency, protect ecosystems from being cleared, improve the way we farm, and improve the rest of the food system. These are all put together as kind of an ensemble of solutions and it works really, really well. 

最后，我们可以修复食品系统的其他环节，无论是运输、冷藏、包装、烹饪等等。我们将所有这些解决方案整合在一起，形成一个完整的体系，以提高效率，保护生态系统不被破坏，改进我们的耕作方式，并改善食品系统的其他环节。这些都被整合在一起，形成了一套解决方案，而且效果非常好。

Beyond cutting emissions, we can also remove some carbon in the food system as well. But just like other sectors, we have to be a little bit careful about carbon removal. It never takes the place of cutting emissions. 

除了减排之外，我们还可以在食品系统中去除一些碳。但与其他行业一样，我们必须谨慎对待碳去除问题。它永远无法取代减排。

Why? Well, in this case, because it starts off really, really small. All the carbon removal on land today is less than a tenth of a percent in the ag system and we are emitting 22%. So it's small. 

为什么？嗯，在这种情况下，因为它开始时真的很小。今天，陆地上所有的碳去除量在农业系统中所占的比例不到 0.1%，而我们的排放量是 22%。所以它很小。

Also, there's a limit to how much we can store in soils and vegetation and how long we can store it. So we have to be careful there. And we also want to make sure we never distract from the real job of cutting emissions in the first place. 

此外，我们能在土壤和植被中储存多少碳以及能储存多久都是有限度的。因此，我们必须谨慎行事。我们还希望确保我们永远不会分散对首要任务--减排的注意力。

But nevertheless, we have some great opportunities to cut emissions and remove carbon and add these two new pillars. For example, we can rewild old agricultural lands, bringing them back to nature, whether it's forests or prairies or coastal ecosystems. Or we can practice regenerative agriculture on our working lands and build up soil carbon and vegetation cover in ways that store carbon, improve soil health, and improve water quality in really great ways. 

尽管如此，我们还是有一些很好的机会来减少排放和去除碳，并增加这两个新的支柱。例如，我们可以对旧的农业用地进行野化，让它们回归自然，无论是森林、草原还是沿海生态系统。或者，我们可以在我们的工作用地上实行再生农业，以储存碳、改善土壤健康和水质的方式增加土壤碳和植被覆盖率，这确实是一种很好的方式。

So putting this all together, we have an enormous toolbox of solutions. First, cutting emissions and removing carbon through rewilding and regenerative agriculture. We have all these tools in this toolbox and we should use them as a kind of combined effort, as a toolbox, as a portfolio. 

因此，综上所述，我们拥有一个巨大的解决方案工具箱。首先，通过野化和再生农业来减少排放和去除碳。我们在这个工具箱里拥有所有这些工具，我们应该把它们作为一种共同的努力，作为一个工具箱，一个投资组合来使用。

Because there's no silver bullet solution to solving the food and climate dilemma at all. There just isn't one. I wish there was. 

因为根本就没有一劳永逸的办法来解决粮食和气候难题。根本就没有。我希望有。

But what we have to do is use this whole portfolio of solutions, have them work together, and find a way forward. So how are we going to move forward here? Well, I think we actually have an incredible opportunity facing us today. While the food and climate crisis is an enormous challenge, of course, I also see it as an incredible opportunity. 

但我们必须做的是利用这整套解决方案，让它们协同工作，找到前进的道路。那么，我们将如何向前迈进呢？嗯，我认为我们今天实际上面临着一个不可思议的机会。当然，粮食和气候危机是一个巨大的挑战，但我也认为这是一个不可思议的机会。

And that opportunity is to build an entirely better food system. We could have a food system that truly nourishes the world today and into the future. We could have a food system that reduces pressure on nature and even help restore some of it. 

这个机会就是建立一个更好的食品体系。我们可以拥有一个能够真正滋养当今和未来世界的食品体系。我们可以拥有一个减少对自然压力甚至帮助恢复自然的食品体系。

And we could have a food system that actually stops climate change. That's entirely possible and at our fingertips today. And we could do all of this at the same time. 

我们可以拥有一个真正阻止气候变化的食品体系。这完全有可能，而且今天就掌握在我们手中。我们可以同时做到这一切。

And what's so beautiful today is this is already possible. None of this requires some new technology. It requires us to change. 

今天的美妙之处在于，这一切都已经成为可能。这一切都不需要什么新技术。它需要我们做出改变。

That's it. And we just need to choose it. But if we do, we can follow the science and we can collaborate across this whole range of solutions and actually unlock a much better future. 

就是这样。我们只需要选择它。如果我们这样做，我们就可以遵循科学，我们就可以在所有这些解决方案的基础上进行合作，真正开启一个更加美好的未来。

Thank you very much. Thank you. 

非常感谢。谢谢。

contribute – verb. to be one of the causes of something. 导致，促成

misinformation – noun. false or inaccurate information. 错误信息

graze – verb. (of animals) to eat grass in a field. 放牧

dominate – verb. to be the most important or powerful person or thing. 主导

sheer – adjective. used to emphasize the size, amount or degree of something. 纯粹的，完全的

real estate – noun. property in the form of land or buildings. 房地产

biodiversity – noun. the variety of plant and animal life in a particular habitat. 生物多样性

degrade – verb. to lower the quality of something. 降低...的质量

emissions – noun. the production and discharge of something, especially gas or radiation. 排放

deforestation – noun. the action of clearing a wide area of trees. 森林砍伐

livestock – noun. farm animals regarded as an asset. 牲畜

methane – noun. a colorless, odorless flammable gas that is the main constituent of natural gas. 甲烷

fertilizers – noun. a chemical or natural substance added to soil or land to increase its fertility. 肥料

pillars – noun. a fundamental principle or part of a system. 支柱

insulating – verb. protect (something) by interposing material that prevents the loss of heat or the intrusion of sound. 隔热

astonishing – adjective. extremely surprising or impressive; amazing. 惊人的

emit – verb. produce and discharge (something, especially gas or radiation). 排放

vegan – noun. a person who does not eat or use animal products. 纯素食者

commodity agriculture – noun. the production of agricultural products specifically for sale in the market. 商品农业

soybeans – noun. a legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. 大豆

palm oil – noun. an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp of the fruit of the oil palms. 棕榈油

tropical rainforest – noun. a hot, wet forest found near the equator, with a high diversity of plants and animals. 热带雨林

indigenous communities – noun. groups of people who are native to a particular place. 土著社区

supply chains – noun. the sequence of processes involved in the production and distribution of a commodity. 供应链

carbon markets – noun. a system for trading allowances of carbon emissions. 碳市场

refrigeration – noun. the process of subjecting to cold or freezing temperatures. 冷藏

ensemble – noun. a group of items viewed as a whole rather than individually. 集合

rewild – verb. restore (an area of land) to its natural uncultivated state. 恢复野生状态

prairies – noun. a large open area of grassland. 草原

regenerative agriculture – noun. a conservation and rehabilitation approach to food and farming systems. 再生农业

vegetation cover – noun. the layer of plants growing on the ground. 植被覆盖

dilemma – noun. a situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two or more alternatives. 困境

nourishes – verb. provide with the food or other substances necessary for growth, health, and good condition. 滋养