Severn Cullis - Suzuki 「里約的傳奇演講」

＃西元1992年6月11日，聯合國西元地球環境高峰會議，
　於巴西里約熱內盧召開。一位12歲的加拿大女孩，
　在冠蓋雲集的世界各國領導人面前，發表了一篇僅有6分鐘的演說。
＃她的演講，讓人們大受感動，並在全球廣為流傳。
＃曾幾何時，已被大家稱作「里約的傳奇演講」
　「用我們每個人的力量來改變世界」，謹將女孩這句流傳全球的話獻給您。

ECO(兒童環保團體)，瑟玟．鈴木的演說

大家好，我是瑟玟．鈴木，代表ECO發言。
ECO是兒童環保團體（Environmental Children's Organization）的縮寫。
我們是一群12歲到13歲的加拿大兒童團體，為了改變世界的現狀而努力。
我們自籌旅費，從加拿大來到巴西，經歷一萬公里的旅程，
只為了告訴各位大人們，必須改變現在的世界。

今天我來到這裡，沒有隱藏的動機。
我從事環保運動，是為了自己的未來而奮鬥。

失去自己的未來，跟選舉落敗和股票慘跌是不能一概而論的。

我在此要說的內容，是為了所有活在未來的孩子，
也為了世界上那些飽受飢餓之苦，卻無人關心的孩子們，
以及無路可走而死亡殆盡的無數動物。

我現在很怕站在太陽底下，因為臭氧層有破洞。
就連呼吸都會感到害怕，因為空氣中可能會有毒。
我跟爸爸常去溫哥華釣魚，直到幾年前，發現了得癌症的魚為止。

而現在，我們幾乎每天都會聽到動植物絕種的消息，牠們永遠不會再活過來了。
我這一生當中有個夢想，希望有一天能夠看到一片叢林，
裡頭有各種野生動物和許多飛舞的鳥兒、蝴蝶。
可是，到了我們的下一代，是不是再也無法擁有這樣的夢想？

你們在我這個年紀時，是否曾經擔心過這樣的問題呢？
這麼重要的事情，並且事態如此嚴重，
我們人類卻仍然用不以為意的輕鬆態度來面對。
我只是個小孩，坦白說，不知道該如何挽救這個危機。
可是，希望你們大人能夠明白，即使是你們也無法解決！

你們不知道，該如何填補臭氧層的破洞吧？
你們不知道，該如何讓鮭魚重回變成死水的河川吧？
你們不知道，該如何才能讓絕種的動物復活吧？
還有，現在已經變成沙漠的地方，你們也不知道該如何再造成森林吧？

如果不知道該如何恢復，就請別再繼續破壞下去吧！

在座當中除了政府、企業和團體人士的代表，也許還有媒體人士和政治家吧？
你們是別人的母親、父親、姐妹、兄弟、叔叔伯伯、阿姨嬸嬸，
而你們每個人同樣也都是為人子女吧！

我還是個孩子，但我知道在場的每個人，都是同一個大家庭的一員。
我們是個擁有五十億以上人口的大家庭。
不，其實，是由三千萬種生物所構成的家庭。
無論國境與各國政府如何將我們區隔，這一點仍然不會改變。
雖然我是個孩子，但是我明白，大家身為這個大家庭的一員，
就必須為單一的目標團結行動。

我很憤怒，卻沒有迷失自己。
我很害怕，可是，要把自己的感受傳達給全世界，我卻不害怕。
在我的國家，我們浪費了許多東西。買了就丟，然後再買過又再丟。
這樣浪費物資的北方國家，根本無法將資源分享給貧困的國家。
即使物資充裕，我們卻害怕施捨、害怕失去自己手中的資產。
在加拿大的我們，享有充分的飲食與居家生活。時鐘、腳踏車、電腦、電視……
要數遍我們所擁有的東西，大概要花上好幾天吧！

兩天前，我在巴西這裡，遇到一群無家可歸的流浪兒。
我們很驚訝，因為其中有個孩子跟我們說：「我真想變有錢。」
如果我有錢的話，我要給所有無家可歸的孩子們，
食物、衣服、藥品、房子，以及愛與溫暖。」

一個失去一切的流浪兒，都會想到互相分享，
那麼擁有一切的我們，又為什麼要這麼貪婪？

這些不幸的孩子們，年紀都和我相仿，令我無法忘懷。
我們出生在不同的地方，卻過著如此天差地別的人生。
我可能也會是住在里約貧民窟的孩子之一，
或是索馬利亞的飢餓兒童、中東戰爭的犧牲者，又或許是在印度當乞丐。
我雖然還是孩子，卻很清楚，如果把花在戰爭上的錢，
全部用來解決貧窮與環境問題，地球將會變成一顆美麗的星球吧！

謝謝您的聆聽。

Address to the Plenary Session, Earth Summit,

Rio Centro, Brazil 1992

Severn Cullis-Suzuki

Hello, I'm Severn Suzuki speaking for E.C.O. - The Environmental Children's organization. We are a group of twelve and thirteen-year-olds from Canada trying to make a difference: Vanessa Suttie, Morgan Geisler, Michelle Quigg and me.

We raised all the money ourselves to come six thousand miles to tell you adults you must change your ways. Coming here today, I have no hidden agenda. I am fighting for my future. Losing my future is not like losing an election or a few points on the stock market. I am here to speak for all generations to come.

I am here to speak on behalf of the starving children around the world whose cries go unheard. I am here to speak for the countless animals dying across this planet because they have nowhere left to go. We cannot afford to be not heard.

I am afraid to go out in the sun now because of the holes in the ozone. I am afraid to breathe the air because I don't know what chemicals are in it.

I used to go fishing in Vancouver with my dad until just a few years ago we found the fish full of cancers. And now we hear about animals and plants going extinct every day - vanishing forever.
In my life, I have dreamt of seeing the great herds of wild animals, jungles and rainforests full of birds and butterflies, but now I wonder if they will even exist for my children to see.

Did you have to worry about these little things when you were my age? All this is happening before our eyes and yet we act as if we have all the time we want and all the solutions.
I'm only a child and I don't have all the solutions, but I want you to realize, neither do you!
You don't know how to fix the holes in our ozone layer.
You don't know how to bring salmon back up a dead stream.
You don't know how to bring back an animal now extinct.
And you can't bring back forests that once grew where there is now desert.
If you don't know how to fix it, please stop breaking it!

Here, you may be delegates of your governments, business people, organizers , reporters or politicians - but really you are mothers and fathers, brothers and sister, aunts and uncles - and all of you are somebody's child.

I'm only a child yet I know we are all part of a family, five billion strong, in fact, 30 million species strong and we all share the same air, water and soil - borders and governments will never change that. I'm only a child yet I know we are all in this together and should act as one single world towards one single goal. In my anger, I am not blind, and in my fear, I am not afraid to tell the world how I feel.

In my country, we make so much waste, we buy and throw away, buy and htrow away, and yet northern countries will not share with the needy. Even when we have more than enough, we are afraid to lose some of our wealth, afraid to share.

In Canada, we live the privileged life, with plenty of food, water and shelter - we have watches, bicycles, computers and television sets. Two days ago here in Brazil, we were shocked when we spent some time with some children living on the streets. And this is what one child told us: "I wish I was rich and if I were, I would give all the street children food, clothes, medicine, shelter and love and affection." If a child on the street who has nothing, is willing to share, why are we who have everything still so greedy?

I can't stop thinking that these children are my age, that it makes a tremendous difference where you are born, that I could be one of those children living in the Favellas of Rio; I could be a child starving in Somalia; a victim of war in the Middle East or a beggar in India.

I'm only a child yet I know if all the money spent on war was spent on ending poverty and finding environmental answers, what a wonderful place this earth would be!
At school, even in kindergarten, you teach us to behave in the world.

You teach us:
not to fight with others,
to work things out,
to respect others,
to clean up our mess,
not to hurt other creatures
to share - not be greedy
Then why do you go out and do the things you tell us not to do?

Do not forget why you're attending these conferences, who you're doing this for - we are your own children.

You are deciding what kind of world we will grow up in. Parents should be able to comfort their children by saying "everything's going to be alright', "we're doing the best we can" and "it's not the end of the world". But I don't think you can say that to us anymore. Are we even on your list of priorities? My father always says "You are what you do, not what you say." Well, what you do makes me cry at night. you grown ups say you love us. I challenge you, please make your actions reflect your words.

Thank you for listening.