Is climate change happening?

氣候變遷真的在發生嗎？

If it is, why are some world leaders under the delusion that it is not?

如果是，為什麼有些世界領袖卻誤以為沒有？

Well, the overwhelming consensus among scientists is that the climate is indeed changing.

科學家之間具壓倒性的共識是氣候確實正在變遷。

It's absolutely clear that over the last half a century or so, temperatures have been rising pretty steadily.

過去半個世紀左右，氣溫一直相當穩定地上升，這絕對是很明確的。

And we know what's causing this warming.

而且我們知道是什麼造成這樣的暖化。

Since the advent of the Industrial Revolution, we've burned fossil fuels for energy, and that has increased CO2 levels in the atmosphere and warmed the planet.

從工業革命發生以來，我們就為了獲取能源而燃燒化石燃料，而這提高了大氣中二氧化碳的含量，並使地球暖化。

It looks as though the average world temperature is not far short of one degree centigrade higher than it was in pre-industrial times.

全球平均溫度看起來不比工業革命前高出攝氏 1 度。

Why are some world leaders deluded about this?

為什麼有些世界領袖會被這個數字矇騙？

Well, in some sense, they're paid to be.

從某種意義上來說，有人付錢讓他們如此。

Some world leaders, most importantly, means Donald Trump.

一些世界領袖，最主要地，指唐納・川普。

The US president who, I think, at one point said climate change is a hoax invented by the Chinese.

這位美國總統，我記得，曾經說過氣候變遷是中國人編造的騙局。

That's partly because some of the Republicans would say, "Well, yes, the climate is changing, but that's not man-made."

有一部分是因為，有些共和黨員會說：「是啦，氣候是在變遷，但那不是人為的。」

"It's just kind of inevitable."

「那算是不可避免的。」

But there's also a stream of the Republican party today in America that's saying, "Actually, the climate probably is changing, but we don't want to use the word 'climate change' because we want to make sure that the energy sector in America and American energy interests are still protected."

不過現在在美國有一小撮共和黨的人表示。事實上，氣候可能有在變遷，但我們不想用「氣候變遷」這個詞，因為我們想確保美國能源部門及能源產業的利益仍受到保護。

There are very large interests in favor of denying climate change.

否認氣候變遷的存在具有非常龐大的利益。

Economic interests invested in the fossil fuels industrial system, which is, after all, the basic backbone of our economies.

畢竟投資在石化工業體系上的經濟利益，是我們經濟最根本的支柱。

But also, you have to remember, the doubts of ordinary people who think that what they're being asked to do is to give up their way of life.

不過我們也要記得一般人的疑慮，他們認為他們在被要求放棄自己的生活方式。

The impacts of climate change are very, very complex.

氣候變遷的影響非常、非常複雜。

Some areas of the world might even get cooler or rainier at certain times, while other areas of the planet get hotter and drier.

在特定時候，有些地區可能變得更涼或下更多雨，而地球上的其他地區變得更熱、更乾燥。

It could bring wildfires to California.

它會給加州帶來野火。

It could also bring the polar vortex to Chicago.

它也可以給芝加哥帶來極地渦旋。

So the complexity of the changes that the planet is undergoing and the way that scientists have spoken about the statistical range of probabilities I think has, in the past, contributed to some doubt.

所以我想，這些地球正在經歷的變化的複雜性，以及科學家對概率統計範圍的討論方式，在過去造成了一些疑慮。

It's a complicated picture.

這是一個複雜的局面。

But right now, what's clear is that when it comes to things like the Paris climate change accord, it's essentially America against most of the rest of the world.

不過現在，很明顯的是，當涉及類似巴黎氣候變遷協議等事務時，基本上都是美國對上全世界。