作者:蒋迅 “ 阿波罗10号 ” ( Apollo 10 ) 是阿波罗计划中第四次载人飞行任务,第一次(也是唯一的载人土星5号)在39B发射台发射。本次任务是第二次环绕月球的载人任务,首次将登月舱带入月球轨道进行测试。在测试中,登月舱离月球表面仅15.6千米。截止2001年(2001年吉尼斯世界纪录大全),“阿波罗10号”在1969年5月26日从月球返回地球途中创造了载人航天器的飞行速度记录:39,897千米/小时(11.08千米/秒)。“阿波罗10号”是登月的最后一次实战演习,它完成了所有测试航天器表现以及检查细节的飞行目标。下一次的“阿波罗11号”终於完成了肯尼迪总统提出的在10年实现登月的誓言。 在“阿波罗10号”上,人类航天史上第一次从太空发回彩色现场电视录象。上面的图片就是最具有代表意义的一张由“阿波罗10号”宇航员拍摄的地球照片。其实,他们拍摄更多的是背景为全黑的地球全景照片。下面的图片就是其中的一张。这些照片引起了民众的极大兴趣。在他们之中就有一位叫作约翰·麦康奈尔 ( John McConnell ) 的人。他在“生活”杂志上看到了其中的一张,并立即意识到这是一个具有象征意义的符号。地球是全人类共享的地方,这样的地球照片正代表着他一直在追求的社会分享和保护环境的理念。 早在1957年10月,在他看到苏联发射了人类第一颗人造卫星后,他就写了一篇著名的文章“让我们的卫星成为希望的象征”(Make Our Satellite a Symbol of Hope)。由於他看到在地球上到处都是家庭暴力和国际冲突,他在文章中号召太空开发中国际合作。这篇文章被广泛转载和引用,这使得他出了名气。他更成立了“希望之星”(Star of Hope) 组织来倡导国际空间合作。他督促白宫开展美国和苏联宇航员的合作,得到了肯尼迪总统的赞赏,最终在尼克松总统时代得宜实现。顺便说一句,除了太空和平,麦康奈尔还搞过许多其他活动,如为香港难民营组织的反饥饿运动 (Meals for Millions) 和“一分钟和平”(Minute for Peace) 等。 1969年,在“阿波罗10号”之前,麦康奈尔就开始有了“地球日”的想法,因为当时在美国已经有人在搞类似的活动。他甚至设计出了第一面地球日的旗帜。旗子上只有两个颜色:白色 (代表云彩) 和蓝色 (代表海洋)。这是一面代表全人类的旗子,不分种族,不分国家。但他总觉得不够满意。有一天,他在翻阅《生活》杂志时,突然看到了“阿波罗10号”宇航员拍摄的地球照片,这张照片立即打动了他的心。於是,新的“ 地球之旗 ” ( Flag of the Earth ) 诞生了。 “地球之旗”宇航员为我们提供了这样一幅美好的地球图片,让每一个人都能骄傲地说,我是一名地球人。但同时,我们每一个人又见过太多的环境污染的照片。难道人类真的要把这美好的图画涂抹成黑色的吗?美国印第安人有一条箴言:“Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children.”说的太好了。地球是我们从子孙后代那里借来的。我们有什么理由不善待地球呢?在2013年地球日到来之际,让我们一起来呼吁:为了子孙后代,请善待地球!
昨天地球日,今天读书日。也许,上帝头一天造了地球,第二天就开始读书了。地球人读书似乎是天生的本能。 前些天有几个同学说,自大学毕业后,就没读过纸质书。我吓了一跳,才感觉自己落伍那么多——人家不看的东西,我还当宝贝呢。而且,所谓“本能”,大概已经在进化中消退了。看来,还要给读书找一个借口。 我说过,我读没用的书,这是读书的前提,也是读书的目标。事实证明,一切为了“用”的目标,不需要读书就能达成。所以,不能以“用”作为读书的借口。当然,“无用”也不能是借口。 “读书日”全称“世界读书与版权日” ( Wo rld Book and Copyright Day ) ——读书讲版权,也许正 如穿衣服讲品牌,这儿好像能找出一个借口:读书像穿衣服一样,能打扮自己,让自己看起来很有品味——这个借口还有一个旁证:我买书就像女孩子买衣服,永远不会嫌多,而且品牌越亮越好。 穿了好衣服要出门,读了几行书就想行万里路,这是另一层借口。可书是一个闭合的世界,走出家门与钻进书堆,效果有时候是一样的,因为每本书创造的世界都不一样——刚才从 Nabokov 的一篇文章里看到一句话: We should always remember that the qork of art is invariably the creation of a new world, so that the first thing we should do is to study that new world as closely as possible, approaching it as as something brand new, having no obvious connection with the world we already know. Mobi Dick 开头有一段“想出海”的文字,可以拿来作为“想出门”或者“”想读书的借口: Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet; and especially whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of me, that it requires a strong moral principle to prevent me from deliberately stepping into the street, and methodically knocking people's hats off--then, I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can. This is my substitute for pistol and ball. With a philosophical flourish Cato throws himself upon his sword; I quietly take to the ship. 【每当我心烦气躁、肝火直升脑门时;每当我心忧绪乱、眼前一片 11 月的愁云惨雾时;每当我身不由己,跟着不相干的送葬队伍走向墓地时;每当我忍无可忍,马上就要在街上像脱缰的野马一样横冲直撞时,我都得赶紧去出海! 只有出海可以阻止我对自己举起枪。 伽图一边诵读哲学一边拔剑自刎,而我只能悄悄上船。】 我不能偷偷上船去,只好偷偷读书了。 作者问: does the magnetic virtue of the needles of the compasses of all those ships attract them thither ? 书里也有磁铁,这是更简单的借口。
图 2009年4月22日,第63届联合国大会一致通过决议,决定将今后每年的4月22日定为世界地球日。 在关闭数日的欧洲各航线终于逐步恢复的今天,在刚刚全国哀悼玉树地震遇难的同胞的今天,我们怀着沉重的心情迎来了第一个世界地球日! 这个地球日不一般! 虽然地球日发起已有四十年了,但是依然没有引起足够多普通民众的重视和参与。在自然灾害不断发生,并造成惨重人命伤亡,巨大财产损失的今天,这个世界地球日能否唤醒人们呢? 行动是解决问题的唯一途径! 让我们共同行动起来,善待自然,保护地球! 一个小孩曾问大人们一个问题: what if there is no future? 如果我们没有将来会怎么样呢? 这个问题现在看来不是没有意义的~
不要以为我每天都在看这些,我仅仅是订阅了这个网站的RSS。 我用的是Google reader,只要能上网,就能把我关注的东西从不同的网站聚合在一个页面。到我有时间时一起看。 不能创造就作一个好的传播者、 地球日的反思 By Tony Yet Apr 22nd, 2009 Category: TED故事 4月22日是地球日,今年已经是第39个地球日了。记得两年前我曾看过Alex Steffen 写的一篇关于地球日的文章,当时看了感觉那文章简直是字字切中要点。今天重新翻出 这文章 来看,其意义不减当年: 在西方,人们会把地球日当成是集中宣传环保的一个大日子,商家也趁此机会拉拢顾客,且看Alex的描述: The biggest problem with Earth Day is that it has become a ritual of sympathy for the idea of environmental sanity. Small steps, were told, ignoring the fact that most of the steps most frequently promoted (returning your bottles, bringing your own bag, turning off the water while you brush your teeth) are of such minor impact (compared to our ecological footprints) that they are essentially meaningless without larger, systemic action as well. The strategy of recycling as a gateway drug get them hooked on it and we can move them on to harder stuff has failed miserably. We can do better. It is, essentially, the politics of gesture, little different than wearing a rubber wrist band or a pink ribbon, and, such a politics is primarily a means of raising money for large NGOs while making regular folks feel a little better about their relationship to a terribly flawed system. Its a broken model , and we can do better. 大意如下:人们已经开始把地球日当成是一种仪式,通过这样一种仪式达到环境上的纯洁。环保人士经常说要做到瓶子回收利用、自带购物袋、注意节约用水等,但是,假如我们没有大系统的调整,那么相比起我们留下来的生态足迹,这样的小行动是没有什么重要价值了。商人则恰恰是看中了消费者的这种愿意参与环保的心理,大打环保牌,引消费者上钩,而后再来硬的,这样的策略已经证明是行不通的。我们可以做得更好。 这实质上只是一种姿势,与人们跟随潮流戴上腕带并无二致,也经常被那些大型的NGO用来做宣传的手法,普通的民众也能感觉好过一点。但是,这是一种已经 失败的模式 ,我们可以做得更好。 Alex接下来指出了一个问题: This point is worth pausing on, because so much of the green marketing BS around us tells us that the planetary crises we face are our fault, that it is our responsibility to fix them and that buying products which are marketed as green will fix that problem. The myth of individual lifestyle responsibility is so strong, most of us dont even comment on it anymore. But in many ways, its a lie. What most needs to be changed in the world are the systems in which we are all enmeshed, and we ourselves, acting alone, are almost powerless to change those systems. To do that, we need better information, stronger connections and new ways of thinking. 就是说,现在人们在强调的往往是绿色消费,进而走向绿色环保。但是,以为单凭个人生活习惯之改变就能解决问题,这个想法是不现实的,从很多个方面来说,这仅仅是一个谎言。世界上最需要改变的是我们共同生活于其间的种种系统/制度,而零散分布的个人行动,在本质上是难以对整个系统带来改变的。要做出改变,我们需要更好的信息、更强的联系以及新式的思维。 讲到信息,Alex写道: Which is exactly why transparency is so important. If were serious about dramatically reducing our footprints, we need to know the true impacts of our actions. We need to know the backstories of all the objects and services in our lives. We need the flows of energy and resources and money that once were hidden from our sight to be made visible. We need complete transparency in public life, so we know our governments (which are ultimately the most important shared levers for action we own) are working (and on whos behalf). And we need all this information revealed in ways that interest and delight and outrage and inform us, through projects like Background Stories and FarmSubsidy.Org and reHOUSE/bath. Knowing the true backstories of our lives is not only the first step to changing our own behaviors intelligently (through strategic consumption, for instance), its also the best way to make clear the need for combined, collective action. 他在此提出要让信息走向透明,让那些隐藏在能源、资源供应链条表面之下信息公开,让政府走向透明,并且要让工业产品背后的故事公诸于世,目前在这样的方向努力的有 Background Stories , FarmSubsidy.org , reHOUSE/bath 等。 说到人与人之间的联系,Alex接着指出: What we need now are much stronger connections between the various camps of people who are all charging forward determined to build a future that works. We need an explosion in information sharing and mutual education, across borders and across disciplines almost a second Enlightenment, where through open debate and fresh thinking and artistic brilliance, we join together to banish ecological ignorance and transcend social irresponsibility. 我们现在需要在那些共同致力于建设一个更美好的未来的人群之间建立更强的联系,这些人虽然来自不同的领域,但他们的愿景是一致的。在信息共享以及相互教育这方面,我们需要有爆炸性的突破,要实现跨学科跨专业 的交流,或者说我们需要第二次文艺复兴运动,通过公开辩论、新式思维以及艺术的启迪,我们能够走在一起,消除我们对于生态的无知,并且重拾我们的社会责任。 最后讲到的是新式思维,Alex这么说: We know now that one planet lives, conceived properly, will be better lives. Many products that are more sustainable are also better made and beautifully durable. Green homes with natural light and fresh air and good insulation are more comfortable than McMansions. Vibrant neighborhoods with nice streets and parks and a strong community offer a better quality of every day life. Fewer toxic chemicals in the air means less asthma and cancer; better food and more walking means less heart disease and diabetes; less driving means fewer people killed and injured in accidents. Waste is expensive, bad design is expensive, and the money we save eliminating both can leave us better off than we were. We can build lives which are bright green and prosperous. 绿色产品、绿色家居都将会成为时尚生活的代名词,这样的物品更有利于环保,并且还能有助于提升人们的生活质量;开放式的社区以及街道公园则为社区交流提供了很好的平台;空气中的有毒化学品数量减少了;人们患哮喘与癌症的几率也会下降;吃的更有质量、多走路,则能减少心脏病以及糖尿病的发病频率。制造垃圾是成本极高的、劣质设计也会带来高昂的成本,一旦我们消灭了这两者,我们就有可能过得更好。我们有能力去建设一种生活,使之既有利于环保又能使人安康富足。 Bright green economies will be the drivers of 21st Century business. The future belongs to those enterprises and agencies that capture the markets for wind power and other clean energy, water purification, clean tech, advanced vehicles, and the sorts of appropriate technologies (like rainwater harvesting and LED lights) needed for sustainable urban living at the bottom of the pyramid. That path leads to the future, and the wreckage of companies and countries that cant learn to think differently will line the way. 创意绿色经济将会成为21世纪商业的主要推动力。那些懂得利用风能和其他清洁能源、懂得水净化、清洁科技、以及其他有利于改善 金字塔底端 人群生活质量的的企业将会占领未来的市场。这样做才能真正走向未来,缺乏这样的思维的企业和国家,都将被历史所抛弃。 (编者注:Alex Steffen写的这一文章主要是针对美国社会而谈的,文中的一些做法可能不一定适用于中国,但是其思想方法与看问题的视角确实值得我们反思。) 相关阅读: TED中国粉丝团 2009TED大会专题 娜利尼纳德卡妮:救救树冠 Worldchanging.com 中文简介 Tagged as: 公民行动 , 地球日 , 环境 2 RESPONSES QingQing on April 23rd, 2009 at 12:30 am : What we need now are much stronger connections between the various camps of people who are all charging forward determined to build a future that works. We need an explosion in information sharing and mutual education, across borders and across disciplines almost a second Enlightenment, where through open debate and fresh thinking and artistic brilliance, we join together to banish ecological ignorance and transcend social irresponsibility.非常欣赏和赞同他这个部分。 感觉现在有一个现象,Sustianability本身是环境、社会、经济三方面因素共同的融合考虑,在谈论可持续发展的时候,企业方面容易更多的只强调了绿色环保方面,环保更多的成为产品/服务的一个特征之一,而容易忽略social方面和人的直接关联(虽然这些新的特质的确也是很重要的改善) collaborative effort is essential to bring forward a sustainable social, ecological and economy environment Y.Jiajia on April 23rd, 2009 at 9:26 am : 怎么说呢,社会发展、物质丰富能造成破坏是肯定的,只是多少问题