VOA标准英语2009年-Countries Affected by Climate Change L

Relief officials in Africa say environmental studies since the 1970's have shown the steady advance of the desert and irregular rains cause floods and drought in Sahelian countries

Scott Stearns | Dakar 07 December 2009

A man walks through a dead maize¹ field due to the drought, near the Mau forest in Kenya, 05 Oct 2009

As officials from more than 100 nations begin talks in Copenhagen on a new global climate deal, Sahelian countries already affected² by climate change want the conference to help them adapt to shifting agricultural production.  

At the last global climate change conference in Kyoto, the United Nations established a fund to address the "urgent and immediate³" needs of developing countries.

The Least Developed Countries Fund prioritized more than 400 climate-change projects.  But eight years later, a study by the Danish government says just one of those projects has been funded.

Relief officials in Africa say the Copenhagen must do a better job of addressing the needs of developing countries.  Thomas Yanga directs operations for the U.N. World Food Program in West and Central Africa.

For some people, climate change is a new phenomena⁴ that will impact them in the future.  But Yanga says many others have been living with the negative consequences of climate change for years.

In Sahelian countries, for example, Yanga says environmental studies since the 1970's have shown the steady advance of the desert and irregular rains that cause floods and drought.

Yanga says the World Food Program hopes the Copenhagen summit takes into account communities that are already living with the impact of climate change and are now more vulnerable to changes in their way of live.  Climatic studies predict agricultural production in Sahelian countries could be cut in half by 2020.

Yanga says one of the most significant impacts of climate change is the migration⁵ of people abandoning lands where they have lived for centuries.  He says the World Food Program is working to stabilize⁶ the environmental impact of climate change by planting trees, re-fertilizing soil, and better managing limited supplies of water.

Yanga says for the Copenhagen summit, the World Food Program is asking donors⁷ to help people live decently by ensuring food security in areas affected by climate change, where  there are already higher rates of malnutrition⁸.

Poor rains in the Sahel this year mean harvests for staple⁹ food crops will likely be one-third lower than normal levels in Niger, northern Nigeria, central Chad and northeastern Mali and Burkina Faso.

 

1 maize   

n.玉米

参考例句：

• There's a field planted with maize behind the house.房子后面有一块玉米地。
• We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。

2 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

3 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

4 phenomena   

n.现象

参考例句：

• Ade couldn't relate the phenomena with any theory he knew.艾德无法用他所知道的任何理论来解释这种现象。
• The object of these experiments was to find the connection,if any,between the two phenomena.这些实验的目的就是探索这两种现象之间的联系，如果存在着任何联系的话。

5 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

6 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

7 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

9 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。