TED演讲:小国家的大想法--摒弃化石燃料(1)

 How do we build a society without fossil fuels? 如果不用石油，我们如何让一个社会运转起来？

This is a very complex challenge, 这是个十分严峻的挑战，

and I believe developing countries could take the lead in this transition. 我相信发展中国家可以为这个改变起带头作用。

And I'm aware that this is a contentious¹ statement, 我很清楚这是一个很有争议性的说法，

but the reality is that so much is at stake in our countries 但事实是，如果我们国家的发展始终围绕着石油，

if we let fossil fuels stay at the center of our development. We can do it differently. 国家就会承担巨大的风险。我们能换一种发展方案。

And it's time, it really is time, 而且是时候，真的是时候了，

to debunk² the myth that a country has to choose between development on the one hand 去揭穿这个所谓一个国家必须在一边是经济发展，

and environmental protection, renewables, quality of life, on the other. 另一边是环境保护，可再生资源，以及生活质量中二选一的谬误。

I come from Costa Rica, a developing country. 我来自哥斯达黎加一个发展中国家。

We are nearly five million people, and we live right in the middle of the Americas, 我们有将近五百万的人口，身处在美洲的中心，

so it's very easy to remember where we live. 所以记住哥斯达黎加的位置十分的简单。

Nearly 100 percent of our electricity comes from renewable sources, five of them. 我们所用的电力资源几乎百分之百来自于可再生资源，一共有五种。

1 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

2 debunk   

v.揭穿真相，暴露

参考例句：

• let's debunk some of the most common falsehoods.让我们来揭穿一些最常见的谬误吧。
• Sequences of maps can also debunk misconceptions.一系列的地图，也有助于厘清错误概念。