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Scientific innovations and responsibility
anglais
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Scientific innovations and responsibility Sujet zéro 2020
The reality of climate change
expression orale
Intérêt du sujet • Ces documents abordent l'axe sous l'angle écologique : quand certains effets du changement climatique sont indéniables, comment pouvons-nous encore remettre en question notre responsabilité ?
Choisissez un document et expliquez en quoi il illustre le mieux, selon vous, l'axe « Innovations scientifiques et responsabilité ».
Document A
Joel Pett Editorial Cartoon used with permission of Joel Pett and the Cartoonist Group. All rights reserved.
This Joel Pett cartoon for USA Today appeared on 7 December 2009, the opening day of COP 15, the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen
Document B
ph © Darren Staples/Reuters
Flooding in York city centre, 28 December 2015
Photograph by Darren Staples/Reuters
Les clés du sujet
Comprendre les documents
Préparer sa présentation
Présentation
Voici un exemple de présentation orale à partir du document A.
conseil
Privilégiez le document A si vous suivez un peu l'actualité et que vous avez suffisamment de vocabulaire sur l'environnement pour donner des exemples précis.
To my mind, the document that best illustrates the idea of scientific innovations and responsibility is the first, and I'm going to explain why.
The reality of climate change
First of all, one aspect of this document tackles the reality of climate change.
The scene in this cartoon takes place during a climate summit, obviously referring to the COP 15 here. During this conference, talks revolved around environmental issues, global warming and the consequent natural disasters.
But not only that: the aim of such conferences is to consider the various solutions states have to implement to curb greenhouse gas emissions. And this doesn't go without encouraging scientific innovations in the fields of renewable energy, recycling, etc.
vocabulaire
to implement : mettre en œuvre
to curb : réduire
Climate change denial
But, on the other hand, this document also shows that the reality of climate change is denied by some.
des points en +
Le mouvement « Fridays for the Future », lancé par Greta Thunberg, pousse les jeunes à se mobiliser pour faire pression sur les responsables politiques.
Indeed, in the audience, we notice the presence of a climate change sceptic. He is questioning aloud the reality of global warming, as well as how worthwhile it is to try to improve the situation.
This is a criticism of some politicians that refuse to acknowledge the responsibility of governments and to assume it in terms of interaction with industries. This attitude is consistent with the defence of the current economic model.
Individual v. states'responsibility
Therefore, this document illustrates two levels of responsibility.
Indeed, very often, citizens are encouraged to act for a better environment – for instance, to buy electric cars (even though their batteries are not recyclable), or to sort and reduce household waste.
vocabulaire
to sort : trier
single-use plastic straw bans :
interdictions des pailles en plastique à usage unique
However, we soon reach a limit at the individual level, if states don't act through legislation. We can give the example of single-use plastic straw bans, already implemented in many countries and American states. It is possible to replace plastic straws with decomposable materials like paper and bamboo. But such research must be developed.
Conclusion
In other words, this cartoon highlights the fact that individuals may change their habits, but what matters in term of improvement of global warming is the implication at a national level in terms of responsibility and decisions.
Entretien
Voici quelques questions que l'examinateur pourrait vous poser.
▶ Do you personally do things for the environment?
Yes of course. It's difficult to do a lot, as I'm not in charge of the shopping, even if I tell my parents to avoid buying plastic-packaged food… But I sort things using the correct bin, I try to avoid using too much paper.
▶ How could we make climate change sceptics eventually change their minds about global warming?
Honestly, I don't think this is possible. The scientific evidence is there, and yet they refuse to admit it. Yet I wonder how some people can be so blind as to what's happening to our planet. Maybe the younger generations are those who will make the world a better place. At least I hope so.