毕业典礼演讲稿英文版

The climate problem is the unintended consequence of our success. We depend on fossil energy to keep our homes warm in the winter， cool in the summer， and lit at night； we use it to travel across town and across continents. Energy is a fundamental reason for the prosperity we enjoy， and we will not surrender this prosperity. The United States has 3 percent of the world population， and yet， we consume 25 percent of the energy. By contrast， there are 1.6 billion people who don’t have access to electricity. Hundreds of millions of people still cook with twigs or dung. The life we enjoy may not be within the reach of the developing world， but it is within sight， and they want what we have.

气候问题是我们的经济发展在无意中带来的后果。我们太依赖化石能源，冬天取暖，夏天制冷，夜间照明，长途旅行，环球观光。能源是经济繁荣的基础，我们不可能放弃经济繁荣。美国人口占全世界的3%，但是我们消耗全世界25%的能源。与此形成对照，全世界还有16亿人没有电，数亿人依靠燃烧树枝和动物粪便来煮饭。发展中国家的人民享受不到我们的生活，但是他们都看在眼里，他们渴望拥有我们拥有的东西。

Here is the dilemma. How much are we willing to invest， as a world society， tomitigate the consequences of climate change that will not be realized for at least 100 years？ Deeply rooted in all cultures， is the notion of generational responsibility. Parents work hard so that their children will have a better life. Climate change will affect the entire world， but our natural focus is on the welfare of our immediate families. Can we， as a world society， meet our responsibility to future generations？

这就是新的挑战。全世界作为一个整体，我们到底愿意付出多少，来缓和气候变化？这种变化在100年前，根本没人想到过。代际责任深深植根于所有文化中。家长努力工作，为了让他们的孩子有更好的生活。气候变化将影响整个世界，但是我们的天性使得我们只关心个人家庭的福利。我们能不能把全世界看作一个整体？能不能为未来的人们承担起责任？

While I am worried， I am hopeful we will solve this problem. I became the director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory， in part because I wanted to enlist some of the best scientific minds to help battle against climate change. I was there only four and a half years， the shortest serving director in the 78-year history of the Lab， but when I left， a number of very exciting energy institutes at the Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley had been established.

虽然我忧心忡忡，但是还是对未来抱乐观态度，这个问题将会得到解决。我同意出任劳伦斯·伯克利国家实验室主任，部分原因是我想招募一些世界上最好的科学家，来研究气候变化的对策。我在那里干了4年半，是这个实验室78年的历史中，任期最短的主任，但是当我离任时，在伯克利实验室和伯克利分校，一些非常激动人心的能源研究机构已经建立起来了。

I am extremely privileged to be part of the Obama administration. If there ever was a time to help steer America and the world towards a path of sustainable energy， now is the time. The message the President is delivering is not one of doom and gloom， but of optimism and opportunity. I share this optimism. The task ahead is daunting， but we can and will succeed.

能够成为奥巴马施政团队的一员，我感到极其荣幸。如果有一个时机，可以引导美国和全世界走上可持续能源的道路，那么这个时机就是现在。总统已经发出信息，未来并非在劫难逃，而是乐观的，我们依然有机会。我也抱有这种乐观主义。我们面前的任务令人生畏，但是我们能够并且将会成功。

We know some of the answers already. There are immediate and significant savings in energy efficiency and conservation. Energy efficiency is not just low-hanging fruit； it is fruit lying on the ground. For example， we have the potential to make buildings 80 percent more efficient with investments that will pay for themselves in less than 15 years. Buildings consume 40 percent of the energy we use， and a transition to energy efficient buildings will cut our carbon emissions by one-third.

我们已经有了一些答案，可以立竿见影地节约能源和提高能源使用效率。它们不是挂在枝头的水果，而是已经成熟掉在地上了，就看我们愿不愿意捡起来。比如，我们有办法将楼宇的耗电减少80%，增加的投资在15年内就可以收回来。楼宇的耗电占我们能源消费的40%，节能楼宇的推广将使我们二氧化碳的释放减少三分之一。

We are revving up the remarkable American innovation machine that will be the basis of a new American prosperity. We will invent much improved methods to harness the sun， the wind， nuclear power， and capture and sequester the carbon dioxide emitted from our power plants. Advanced bio-fuels and the electrification of personal vehicles make us less dependent on foreign oil.

我们正在加速美国这座巨大的创新机器，这将是下一次美国大繁荣的基础。我们将大量投资有效利用太阳能、风能、核能的新方法，大量投资能够捕获和隔离电厂废气中的二氧化碳的方法。先进的生物燃料和电力汽车将使得我们不再那么依赖外国的石油。

In the coming decades， we will almost certainly face higher oil prices and be in a carbon-constrained economy. We have the opportunity to lead in development of a new， industrial revolution. The great hockey player， Wayne Gretzky， when asked， how he positions himself on the ice， he replied，“ I skate to where the puck is going to be， not where it’s been.” America should do the same.

在未来的几十年中，我们几乎肯定会面对更高的油价和更严厉的二氧化碳排放政策。这是一场新的工业革命，美国有机会充当领导者。伟大的冰球选手Wayne Gretzky被问到，他如何在冰上跑位，回答说：“我滑向球下一步的位置，而不是它现在的位置。”美国也应该这样做。

The Obama administration is laying a new foundation for a prosperous and sustainable energy future， but we don’t have all of the answers. That’s where you come in. In this address， I am asking you， the Harvard graduates， to join us. As our future intellectual leaders， take the time to learn more about what’s at stake， and then act on that knowledge. As future scientists and engineers， I ask you to give us better technology solutions. As future economists and political scientists， I ask you to create better policy options. As future business leaders， I ask that you make sustainability an integral part of your business.

奥巴马政府正在为美国的繁荣和可持续能源，打下新的基础。但是我们还有很多不知道的地方。这就需要你们的参与。在本次演讲中，我请求在座各位哈佛毕业生加入我们。你们是我们未来的智力领袖，请花时间加深理解目前的危险局势，然后采取相应的行动。你们是未来的科学家和工程师，我要求你们给我们更好的技术方案。你们是未来的经济学家和政治学家，我要求你们创造更好的政策选择。你们是未来的企业家，我要求你们将可持续发展作为你们业务中不可分割的一部分。

Finally， as humanists， I ask that you speak to our common humanity. One of the cruelest ironies about climate change is that the ones who will be hurt the most are the most innocent: the worlds poorest and those yet to be born.

最后，你们是人道主义者，我要求你们为了人道主义说话。气候变化带来的最残酷的讽刺之一，就是最受伤害的人，恰恰就是最无辜的人——那些世界上最穷的人们和那些还没有出生的人。

The coda to this last movement is borrowed from two humanists.

这个最后乐章的完结部是引用两个人道主义者的话。

The first quote is from Martin Luther King. He spoke on ending the war in Vietnam in 1967， but his message seems so fitting for today’s climate crisis:

第一段引语来自马丁·路德·金。这是1967年他对越南战争结束的评论，但是看上去非常适合用来评论今天的气候危机。

“This call for a worldwide fellowship that lifts neighborly concern beyond one“s tribe， race， class， and nation is in reality a call for an all-embracing and unconditional love for all mankind. This oft misunderstood， this oft misinterpreted concept， so readily dismissed by the Nietzsches of the world as a weak and cowardly force， has now become an absolute necessity for the survival of man … We are now faced with the fact， my friends， that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history， there is such a thing as being too late.”

“我呼吁全世界的人们团结一心，抛弃种族、肤色、阶级、国籍的隔阂；我呼吁包罗一切、无条件的对全人类的爱。你会因此遭受误解和误读，信奉尼采哲学的世人会认定你是一个软弱和胆怯的懦夫。但是，这是人类存在下去的绝对必需。……我的朋友，眼前的事实就是，明天就是今天。此刻，我们面临最紧急的情况。在变幻莫测的生活和历史之中，有一样东西叫做悔之晚矣。”

The final message is from William Faulkner. On December 10th， 1950， his Nobel Prize banquet speech was about the role of humanists in a world facing potential nuclear holocaust.

第二段引语来自威廉·福克纳。1950年12月10月，他在诺贝尔奖获奖晚宴上发表演说，谈到了世界在核战争的阴影之下，人道主义者应该扮演什么样的角色。

“I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal， not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice， but because he has a soul， a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance. The poet”s， the writer“s， duty is to write about these things. It is his privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart， by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past.”

“我相信人类不会仅仅存在，他还将胜利。人类是不朽的，这不是因为万物当中仅仅他拥有发言权，而是因为他有一个灵魂，一种有同情心、牺牲精神和忍耐力的精神。诗人、作家的责任就是书写这种精神。他们有权力升华人类的心灵，使人类回忆起过去曾经使他无比光荣的东西——勇气、荣誉、希望、自尊、同情、怜悯和牺牲。”

Graduates， you have an extraordinary role to play in our future. As you pursue your private passions， I hope you will also develop a passion and a voice to help the world in ways both large and small. Nothing will give you greater satisfaction.

各位同学，你们在我们的未来中扮演举足轻重的角色。当你们追求个人的志向时，我希望你们也会发扬奉献精神，积极发声，在大大小小各个方面帮助改进这个世界。这会给你们带来最大的满足感。

Please accept my warmest congratulations. May you prosper， may you help preserve and save our planet for your children， and all future children of the world.

最后，请接受我最热烈的祝贺。希望你们成功，也希望你们保护和拯救我们这个星球，为了你们的孩子，以及未来所有的孩子。