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从燃料制造到尿液回收,这所新学院正在创新一个更可持续的未来 | 盖茨笔记

Bill Gates 比尔盖茨 2022-11-05

Many people look at the environmental challenges our planet faces and see little reason for hope. But I can’t help feeling optimistic that the world has much of what we need to prevent a climate disaster—and we can invent the things we need but don’t have yet.

许多人看待地球面临的环境挑战时找不到抱有希望的理由。但我不由得感到乐观,因为世界上已经有了很多我们预防气候灾难所需的东西——而我们还可以发明我们需要但还没有的东西。

While our fight against climate change is far from over, I continue to be inspired by the innovative spirit that’s been unleashed across the world to invent the tools we need to stop global warming and avoid the worse effects of climate change.

虽然我们与气候变化的斗争还远未结束,但我不断被世界各地涌现的创新精神所鼓舞,他们发明了我们所需的工具,以阻止全球变暖,避免气候变化带来更糟糕的影响。

My optimism got another big boost during my recent visit to Stanford University’s new Doerr School of Sustainability. The school was made possible through the generosity of John and Ann Doerr, who are supporting the school with a $1.1 billion gift, the largest contribution in Stanford’s history.

在我近期造访斯坦福大学新成立的杜尔可持续发展学院期间,我的乐观情绪又得到了极大的鼓舞。学院的成立源于约翰·杜尔和安·杜尔夫妇的慷慨捐赠,他们捐赠了11亿美元,用于学院筹建。这也是斯坦福大学历史上最大金额的单笔捐赠。

Touring research labs and meeting with professors and students at this one-of-a-kind school, I was blown away by the creativity and ingenuity at work to meet the energy and sustainability challenges of today and the future.

当我在这所独一无二的学院参观了研究实验室,并与教授和学生会面之后,我不禁震撼于他们为应对现今和未来的能源和可持续发展挑战而进行的颇具创造力和革新性的研究。

I stepped into the lab of Professor Thomas Jaramillo and learned about exciting research underway to convert water and carbon dioxide into fuels and fertilizer. Nearby, I visited with Professor William Tarpeh and heard about his surprising effort to minimize the environmental impact of our liquid waste, primarily urine, by recovering valuable resources from it, including nitrogen, phosphorous, lithium and even gold!

我走进托马斯·贾拉米洛教授的实验室,了解到正在进行的一项令人兴奋的研究——将水和二氧化碳转化为燃料和肥料。在附近,我拜访了威廉·塔尔佩教授,了解到他的杰出工作——通过从我们的液体废物(主要是尿液)中回收有价值的资源,包括氮、磷、锂甚至黄金!从而将其对环境的影响降到最低。

The Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, which opened its doors last month, was founded with the goal of accelerating solutions to address the global climate crisis. Given the urgency of its mission, the school has pulled together many academic disciplines under one roof, including Earth and planetary sciences, energy technology, sustainable cities, the natural environment, food and water security, human society and behavior, and human health and the environment. This approach will not only allow more collaboration among researchers, but it also lets students pursue double degrees, bridging science and business, law, and humanities. The world’s challenges cross many different disciplines, and the next generation of leaders should be able to do the same.

斯坦福杜尔可持续发展学院于上月开学,它成立的目标是加速找到解决全球气候危机的方案。鉴于其使命的紧迫性,该学院囊括了许多学科,包括地球和行星科学、能源技术、可持续城市、自然环境、粮食和水安全、人类社会与行为、人类健康与环境。这样一来,不仅可以让研究人员之间进行更多的合作,而且可以让学生获得双学位,将科学与商业、法律与人文学科联系起来。世界面临的挑战跨越了许多不同的学科,下一代的气候领导者们应该具备这种跨学科能力。

Getting to net zero emissions is one of the hardest tasks that humanity has ever faced. We need to change the way we make almost everything in the next 30 years to get to net zero emissions by 2050. That will require many new innovations. It will also require all of us—activists, elected officials, business leaders, philanthropists, and citizens—to be engaged in fighting climate change. Working together toward this common goal, as I saw students and researchers doing at this new school, I’m optimistic we can develop the breakthroughs that could transform our global economy, our lives, and our planet for the better.

实现净零排放是人类有史以来面临的最艰巨的任务之一。我们需要在未来30年内改变几乎所有东西的生产方式,以求在2050年实现净零排放。这将需要许多新的创新。这也将需要我们所有人——活动家、民选官员、商业领袖、慈善家和民众——全部参与到应对气候变化的行动中来,就像我看到学生和研究人员在这所新学院所做的那样,为实现这一共同目标而共同努力。我很乐观,我相信我们可以取得使全球经济、我们的生活和地球都变得更好的突破。



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