人与自然篇

人与自然篇

We Are a Normal Member of the Big Family of Nature

Honorable judges, ladies and gentlemen，

Today，we are gathering here to discuss a very hot issue，how to find harmony in a new age between man and nature? Where modern science and technology are concerned I am only a layman I have to say. However, living in this “new age”, seeing my dear ones suffering from respiratory diseases from time to time, finding the beautiful colors of green and blue are being replaced by that of gray and pale, and realizing that our mother planet is getting more and more unhealthy; I can’t help trying to offer my idea and my trivial efforts to look for the answer of the question.

As the ancient Greek oracle goes: know thyself. I think in answering this abovementioned question, this precondition is also very important.

Who are we? This is a question, which should be answered not only by those specialists, but also by every one of human beings.

Some people may proudly say: we are the masters of nature. It is true that the idea of “man can conquer nature” has dominated people’s mind for years, and it is true, man has kept acting like a master and doing whatever things he wants for thousands of years. However, as the consequence of this kind of “leadership”, now the “master” seems to be confronted with problems that are far beyond his control. Facts are really very ample. The green house effect leaves islands and cities along the coast, such as this oriental pearl-Shanghai, in danger of the disaster of being drowned; the holes of the ozone layer make the earth less suitable to live for some creatures, including human beings; the phenomena of EL Nino^[53] and La Nina^[54] leave the land with serious flood and drought, and the diseases, caused by pollution, are increasing at an incredible speed... Seeing all these facts, can we still ignore the counterattack of nature? We are not the masters of nature. Facing all the disasters made by ourselves, we, mankind as a whole should realize that we are just a normal member of the big family of nature. Any mistreatment towards nature will meet only with the revenge from her.

By saying so, I do not mean we should give a sudden stop to any development. Because that will result in a threat to the existence of human society. I mean we should treat nature equally, leaving the chance of existence and development to nature as we are obtaining the same thing, and thus we will get the situation of win-win.

I am very pleased to find that now more and more people, from every corner of the planet, have come to realize that harmony with nature is the only way to universal and continuous progress and prosperity. And I think that is why we come here from all over the country to discuss this topic today.

I want to end my speech by quoting from Mr. Nixon. “Our destiny offers, not the cup of despair, but the chalice of opportunity.” The future is not ours to see, of course. However, by seizing firmly the opportunities, by knowing clearly about ourselves, we, human beings, can doubtlessly achieve the real harmony with nature!

Thank you.

[点评] 在重视可持续发展的今天，环境问题备受社会的关注。爱护地球——人类的家园，不仅成为共识，也是人类文明的标志。本文作者以精练雄辩之语，论述物质文明所带来的对环境的破坏；以形象生动的语言，描述了自然界所经历的种种劫难。论点明确，论据充分，语言简洁，逻辑性强。

Let Us Put Our Words into Our Deeds

Honorable judges, ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning! Today it is my great honor to be here and make my speech. My topic is “Let Us Put Our Words into Our Deeds”.

First, let me describe to you a picture in my mind. Suppose you are a lovely songbird in the forest. Every day you wake up to the rising sun, preen^[55] your feathers in the clear mountain stream, feed upon fresh seeds and live worms, and smell the scent of lilies and daffodils^[56]. Then one day a strange creature appears, walking on its two hind legs and staring at you. Greatly alarmed, you stop singing and fly away. Since then, more of those creatures have appeared. They clear the land and cut down trees. As a result, you don’t have enough food or shelter. Some of your friends have died of drinking the wastewater they pumped into the stream or of eating the litter they left on the ground. The forest is dead silent now except for the noises those creatures make. Sadly, you think to yourself, “Maybe it is time for me to go.”

This is not a fairytale, but what has actually happened in the bird island nature reserve in Qinghai Province, in northwest China. Excessive tourism has reduced the number of bird species by 70% in the past ten years. Such things are happening all around the world.

Despite many benefits it has brought to the modern society, tourism has also been harmful to the ecosystem. Many shortsighted people, even the local government, have been developing the tourist industry at the expense of environmental destruction. Now it is high time for us to make joint efforts to protect our environments.

It is good to see that nowadays both the government and people are becoming more aware of environmental protection and ecological balance. What we need to do now is to put our words into our deeds. And this should start from everyone of us, and it should start from small instances.

It can be as simple as: do not litter; and strictly observe the rules and regulations of the tourist areas. When traveling, use as few plastic bags and boxes as possible. When traveling, and whenever possible, use public transportation instead of always driving your own car. Once you are in a scenic area, like in the mountains or in a forest, don’t make big noises; keep quiet so as not to disturb birds or animals. One more thing, go up and interfere, whenever you see anyone doing anything harmful.

Now let’s return to the lovely bird and the strange creatures. Who you may have guessed are no one else but we human beings. We can choose to change the pictures and save the bird and other species that we have gone all that way to see. We can come back with a peaceful heart, knowing that the lovely bird will go living in its forest and singing its favorite songs.

Thank you!

[点评] 该演讲稿充满激情地向人们阐述了环境保护这个全世界所面临的问题。文章内容充实，观点鲜明，语言生动，一些疑问句和数字的使用，不仅增加了文章的感染力，也使文章更具说服力。

The Duty of Individuals to the Environment

Ladies and Gentlemen, good morning!

The environment of our planet is at risk, and man is responsible, since the ecology of the earth is inexorably^[57] linked with man’s “progress”, now more than ever. Many studies and reports leave us in no doubt that unless something is done very quickly to arrest the current trend, we could be on the way to a disaster of global magnitude^[58] within the next 50～60 years.

The rainforests of Brazil and other parts of the world are still being destroyed at an increasing rate. Emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere continue unabated^[59] and look like they will get worse before they get better. The evil effects on human population of the so-called global warming have been well publicized. We all know about the facts, but what action is being taken? In practice, little except empty talk! Why is it so? The answer may be the seemingly unsolvable problems of international politics and finance, yet it is only on a basis of international agreement and understanding that these problems can be solved.

But the history of humanity has repeatedly shown that man, in global terms, can take care of himself and there is no reason to believe that he will not eventually find a way out of the disasters. If world governments seem to be dragging their feet, then it is to individuals (in a collective) that we must turn in order to find practical solutions. Conservationists, through their respective national or international bodies, have for many years been fighting often hopeless and always difficult battles for the conservation of wildlife, forests, water resources and nature reserves. But there is as yet one largely untapped source of wildlife, forests, water resources and nature reserves. But there is as yet one largely untapped source of individuals who could add a definite contribution to the issues at hand. Beyond all doubt, we ordinary people have always been conscious of and concerned for the environment problems. At present, the debating point is: “What effective action should we take first to create surrounding of our own?” Your views are welcome, please.

Thank you!

[点评] 该演讲稿旨在说明环境保护的重要性和迫切性。尽管人类在环境保护方面已经取得了一定的成就，但还有许多问题需要解决。每个人都要行动起来，为了我们赖以生存的地球，为了我们的子孙后代，尽己所能做出应有的贡献。