Earth Day: European Scientists Stage Protest March Against Reduced Budgets
VOA News
April 22, 2017 7:15 AM (source)
Earth Day: European Scientists Stage Protest March Against Reduced Budgets
「地球日」上街遊行：歐洲科學家抗議預算縮水
April 22, 2017 7:15 AM
Marthe van der Wolf
BRUSSELS —
European scientists are taking part in the March for Science demonstration taking place in hundreds of cities around the world to commemorate Earth Day. Science and research skeptics are becoming more mainstream in an era of populist and Eurosceptic movements. And on both sides of the Atlantic, there is less funding to support independent research.
Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, a professor at the University of Leuven, says shifting priorities in Europe has had an impact on the work of scientists.
"Now funds for fundamental research are much more difficult to get. Even if the budget remains the same or sometimes has increased, there was a shift in priorities towards research that is supposed to deliver more immediate results in terms of job creation or that kind of thing. Or research that helps the European industry to bring a product to the market. And climate scientists are not building any products that the European industries can sell."
The European Union set a target for its member states that they should spend three percent of their budget on science, but many countries are only at around two percent.
Scientists hope that by joining forces globally, they will raise awareness about a global trend that seems to take science less serious. With U.S. President Donald Trump in the White House and populist and Eurosceptic movements gaining popularity in Europe, scientists say their budgets are being reduced and their work is being taken less serious.
Bas Eickhout, a scientist and member of the European Parliament for the Greens Party, says climate change policy should not be seen as a "left wing hobby." He calls on scientist to be more involved in the decision making process.
"Not in policy making itself but providing information to politicians is crucial. And quite often once we start with decision making, that information is just lost. Scientist are really a bit too scared for the word lobby, and I don't think [it's] lobbying that [you're] doing, but [it's] also trying to feed decision making also during the negotiations, and not only at the beginning."
The March for Science is a volunteer based movement and organizers say there is an "alarming trend toward discrediting scientific consensus and restricting scientific discovery." The organizers aim to celebrate science and hold political and science leaders accountable, but do not affiliate with any political party.
Sofie Vanthournout, director of Sense about Science EU, a charity advocating the importance of science, says the march aims to change the perspective of citizens and politicians who doubt the importance of science:
"The message that we want to bring […] is important for every aspect of our lives, for every aspect of society. Whether it's in technology that we use in our daily lives or whether it is for important decisions that politicians make about our lives. We don't want scientists to tell politicians what to do but we need the politicians to have access to all of the facts and all of the knowledge that is available."
One week after the March of Science, the People's Climate March will follow. In 2015, the world came together to sign the Paris Accord, an agreement signed by almost all nations in the world to curb global warming.
U.S. President Trump promised during his election campaign to pull the United States out of the international accord, but later softened his stance, saying he thinks there is "some connectivity" between human activity and global warming.
歐洲的科學家們上街紀念「地球日(Earth Day)」（編按：Earth Day「地球日」是每年的4月22日），參與於全球數百個城市舉行的「為科學而走(March for Science)」遊行示威(demonstration)。在民粹主義(populist)和歐盟懷疑主義(Eurosceptic)的時代潮流下，對科學與科學研究持懷疑態度的人士(skeptic)當道，而支持獨立研究的資金在大西洋的兩岸都減少了（編按：本新聞脈絡中，「大西洋的兩岸」指的是「美國」與「歐洲」）。
比利時(Belgium)魯汶大學(the University of Leuven)教授Jean-Pascal van Ypersele表示，歐洲對許多議題的優先順序改變，已經衝擊到科學家們的工作。
「現今要取得用以作為基礎研究的資金變得更困難。政府預算雖仍維持相同水準，有時甚至還增加，但研究預算的優先順序已經改變，對創造就業有立即成效的或相關類型的研究，或是能幫助歐洲工業創造出市場產品的研究，將會優先取得預算。而研究氣候的科學家卻無法替歐洲的工業製造出可販售的產品。」Jean-Pascal van Ypersele如此表示。
歐盟曾經為各成員國設定目標，即其預算的3%應該用於科學研究，但許多歐盟國家卻只投入約2%的預算資金於科學研究上。
有一種對科學研究似乎不太重視的全球趨勢正在成形，因此科學家們希望能透過這次全球力量的串聯來提高大眾對於這種趨勢的覺察。隨著美國川普總統入主白宮與歐洲民粹主義和歐盟懷疑主義盛行(gain popularity)，科學家說他們的研究預算正被刪減，而且其科學研究成果也不受重視。
身兼科學家與歐洲議會的綠黨成員Bas Eickhout表示，氣候變遷的政策不該只被當作「左派的嗜好消遣」而已，他呼籲(call on)科學家應更投入和參與決策過程。
他說：「科學家不應僅僅參與政策制定本身，向政治人物提供資訊也至為重要。往往當我們開始要制定決策的時候，制定決策所需要的資訊就被遺忘在一旁了。科學家對於『遊說(lobby)』二字也有點太大驚小怪。我認為遊說不只是單純地遊說而已，遊說是要在決策制定的談判過程中仍持續地提供資訊，而不是只在決策開始時提供資訊。」
「為科學而走」是參與者自願發起的運動。活動主辦人表示：「現在有一種不信賴科學共識(consensus)和限制科學發現的趨勢，這種趨勢令人擔憂。」遊行活動的主辦人以彰顯科學價值並讓政治人物和科學家們承擔起責任(hold . . . accountable)為目標，而不是要附庸於(affiliate with . . .)任何的政黨。
倡導科學之重要性的慈善機構「歐盟科學智識(Sense about Science EU)」，其主任Sofie Vanthournout表示，這次遊行旨在改變對科學重要性持懷疑態度的人民和政治人物的看法(perspective)。
他表示說：「無論是關於我們日常生活中廣泛運用的科技，還是關於政治人物所做出的攸關我們生活的重大決策，我們希望傳達的這些訊息對我們的生活和社會各個層面都很重要。我們並不是要科學家去告訴政治人物該做些什麼，而是期待政治人物能取得(have access to . . . )所有相關的科學事實與可利用的科學知識。」
「為科學而走」一週之後緊接著的是「人民為氣候而走(People's Climate March)」。世界各國曾於2015年時齊聚一堂，共同簽署了「巴黎協議(Paris Accord)」。幾乎全世界所有的國家都簽署了這一份抑制(curb)全球暖化的協議。
美國總統川普在競選活動期間曾信誓旦旦地承諾，要讓美國退出此國際協議(accord)，但他後來立場(stance)軟化，並說他認為人類活動和全球暖化之間存有「一些關聯」。
Language Notes
demonstration (n) 遊行，示威
*demonstrate (v) 示威，遊行
skeptic (n) 懷疑論者，持懷疑態度的人
* skeptical (a) 懷疑的，持懷疑態度的；新聞中的Eurosceptic一字是指「對歐盟感到懷疑的人」，這裡使用英式拼法，因此拼成 “sceptic”而非 “skeptic”
populist (n) 民粹主義者
*本字也常作形容詞，意即「民粹主義的，平民主義的」
lobby (v) 遊說
*本字當名詞時，常見的意思是「大堂，大廳」，而另一相關名詞lobbyist則是指「說客，遊說者」
consensus (n) 共識
*reach a consensus about/on . . . (v phr) 對. . . . . .達成共識
accountable (a) 應負責任的
*新聞中的用法是 "hold someone accountable (for something)"，意即「讓某人（為某事）負起責任」
affiliate (v) 使併入，使隸屬（較大的團體或組織）
*本字在使用上常用被動語態，其結構是 "be affiliated with/to . . "，表示「隸屬於. . . . . .」
perspective (n) 觀點；看法
have access to . . . (v phr) 可以取得. . . . . .；得以使用. . . . . .
curb (v) 控制，遏止
accord (n) 協議；條約
stance (n) 觀點，立場
Check your vocabulary!
Fill in the blanks with a word or phrase from the list above. Make necessary changes. After you finish, highlight the blanks to reveal the hidden answers.
Because of its geographical position, Germany's perspective on the situation in Russia is very different from Washington's.
Measures have been taken to curb inflation.
Small businesses have lobbied hard against changes in the tax laws.
The doctor's stance on the issue of abortion is well known.
The school is affiliated with a national association of driving schools.
People say it can cure colds, but I'm a skeptic.
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