距離「世界末日」的那一天，究竟有多遠，還是有多近？
也許，我們等不到外星人入侵地球，也看不到人工智慧毀滅人類，而是先被大自然吞噬。
關於氣候變遷，始終是人類選擇性避開的麻木議題。去年，瑞典少女 Greta Thunberg 在聯合國氣候峰會憤怒發表演說的畫面，早已隨著時間被世人漸漸地遺忘。如今，一切看似風平浪靜，其實正悄悄地進入倒數階段，無法想像，你我是如此靠近「地球的最後期限」。
7 年 102 天 12 小時 2 分 1 秒
紐約曼哈頓聯合廣場上的「倒數時間」
近日，在人潮眾多的紐約市曼哈頓聯合廣場（Union Square）的建築物上，出現了一串神秘的數字，它看似在倒數著什麼，讓路過的上班族與居民感到匪夷所思。隨後，跑馬燈上顯示一串文字：「地球已經有了最後期限」，直接告訴世人，我們即將邁向更嚴峻的環境。
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A new digital clock unveiled in Manhattan’s Union Square over the weekend promises to tell you exactly how long the world has left to act before an irreversible climate emergency alters human existence. The Climate Clock unveiled by artists Gan Golan and Andrew Boyd warned at 1:30 p.m. Monday that there were 7 years, 101 days, 17 hours, 29 minutes and 22 seconds until Earth’s carbon budget is depleted, based on current emission rates. A total depletion would thrust the world into further turmoil and suffering through more flooding, more wildfires, worsening famine and extensive human displacement, according to the artists. The timer counts down how long it will take for the world to burn through its carbon budget if swift action isn’t taken to keep warming under 1.5 degrees Celsius. If Earth’s temperatures increase by 1.5 degrees Celsius, the planet will fall victim to extreme heat waves, fires, droughts and limited water availability, a 2019 NASA report on global climate change warns. The clock’s second figure, displayed in green, is labeled a “lifeline.” It tracks the percentage of available energy being supplied from renewable sources. Read more by clicking the link in our bio. (Photo by Ben Wolf)
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根據「柏林全球公共與氣候變化研究所」所計算的倒數時間，設計這款時鐘的藝術家 Gan Golan 和 Andrew Boyd 將它命名為「氣候時鐘（The Climate Clock）」，藉此希望世人重視氣候變遷的急迫，我們必須盡快為地球做出一些改變，它剩下來的時間已經不多了！
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The Earth has a deadline. And the Climate Clock in New York City is keeping time. Metronome’s digital clock in Union Square has been reprogrammed. Now, instead of measuring 24-hour cycles, it is measuring what two artists, Gan Golan and Andrew Boyd, present as a critical window for action to prevent the effects of global warming from becoming irreversible. According to the clock, there is a little more than 7 years. “This is arguably the most important number in the world,” Boyd said. “And a monument is often how a society shows what’s important, what it elevates, what is at center stage.” The artists’ goal of creating a large-scale clock was influenced in part by the Doomsday Clock, maintained online by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, and by the National Debt Clock near Bryant Park in Manhattan. The artists said it was based on calculations by the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change in Berlin. Golan and Boyd decided that it would have the most impact if it were displayed in a conspicuous public space and presented like a statue or an artwork. It will be on display until Sept. 27, but the creators say their aim is to arrange for the clock to be permanently displayed, there or elsewhere. Tap the link in our bio to read more about the Climate Clock. Photo by @jeenahmoon
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然而，回顧 2018 年聯合國所提出的「均溫」報告就曾警告：倘若全球暖化以當前的速度持續地惡化，地球均溫恐於 2030 年至 2052 年間上升攝氏 1.5 度。此外，今年《美國國家科學院院刊》也罕見作出警告：地球再過五十年將出現「近乎不適宜居住」的高溫天氣。
眾多報告數據一一攤在世人眼前，無疑代表著：人類未來的命運取決於地球的「環境」。
我們正處於地球末日的邊緣
地球的未來掌握在你我的生活習慣
報告的數字可能不夠吸引人，但透過「氣候時鐘」倒數計時的方式，卻多了「危機感」。
地球的未來，落在人類的手中，為了這片土地，我們可以幫助地球做到很多事。或許，地球不奢求人類立即改變所有生活習慣，但只要慢慢地改善，每天做一點，它就會很欣慰。
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As of Aug. 22, the Associated Press reports, more than 560 fires are burning across California, many of them ignited by thousands of lightning strikes earlier this week. They are being battled by more than 12,000 firefighters, aided by helicopters and air tankers. While many are small and remote, there are some two dozen major blazes; more than 100,000 people are under evacuation orders. The cluster of fires in northern California known as the LNU Lightning Complex has scorched at least 314,000 acres, reported to now be the second-largest in recent state history. In these photographs: Fire retardant hangs in the air after being dropped ahead of the LNU Lightning Complex in Healdsburg on Aug. 20; Bill Nichols, 84, works to save his home—where he has lived for 77 years—as the LNU Lightning Complex tear through Vacaville on Aug. 19; firefighters attempt to extinguish the Hennessey Fire near Vacaville on Aug. 19; and the night sky glows red from the Holser Fire near Lake Piru, north of Los Angeles, as a water-dropping helicopter works to slow the spread of flames on Aug. 17. Photographs by Justin Sullivan (@sullyfoto)—@gettyimages, Noah Berger (@noah3929)—@apnews, Neal Waters—@epaphotos-EFE/@shutterstock and @robgauthier—@latimes/@shutterstock
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現在開始，我們可以學著做到這些，例如：節約能源，多搭大眾交通工具或是騎腳踏車，少吃肉，避免使用一次性塑料，養成攜帶環保杯、環保筷、環保袋的習慣，降低螢幕使用的時間，減少碳足跡，參與相關的議題，把「票」投給對環境有貢獻和實質幫助的政客。
從外太空再看看熟悉又陌生的地球，不知不覺多了幾分感觸。它看起來好像沒怎麼樣，卻默默地正在飽受人類與氣候的摧殘。我們只剩下七年的時間可以救地球，一切迫在眉睫。
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