KATHARINE HAYHOE

Climate scientist and director of the Climate Science Center at Texas Tech University

What will be the impact of the pandemic on human rights, the climate and our value system?

“When it comes to climate change, people say ‘Well, isn’t there some good news?’ And there is some good news, if you can call it that. We have seen a drop in air-pollutant emissions. We have seen blue skies, the likes of which many polluted urban areas hadn’t seen in decades. We’ve also seen a drop in carbon emissions. But here’s the thing: As the pandemic passes, those emissions will jump right back up again. Why? Because these reductions were not achieved through sustainable ways. Shutting down the economy and throwing people out of work are not sustainable ways to decrease carbon emissions and air pollution. They need to be decreased through sustainable methods. The bottom line is this: We face a turning point in our history today. Will we choose to head forward into a new, better and cleaner future or will we cling to the past even harder?”

What values do we need to take into the new world?

“The pandemic has reminded us of something that many of us had forgotten: No matter where we live, no matter what language we speak, no matter who we are, no matter where we fall on the political spectrum, we all care about the same things. We care about our health and the safety of our families, our loved ones, our communities and the places where we live. That’s what the pandemic threatens, and that is exactly what climate change threatens too. So what do we need to take with us into this new world? The realization that what unites every single one of us as humans living on this planet is far more than what divides us.”