Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Climate change will bring great social unrest in the next 30 yrs
Attenborough warns MPS
THE turmoil from parts of the world being made uninhabitable by climate change will bring “great social unrest”, Sir David Attenborough warned yesterday.
In a rare appearance before MPS the 93-year-old naturalist spoke of changes he had seen over his lifetime that made him fear for the planet.
He said: “I’m not by nature a propagandist. But if you become aware what’s happening to the natural world you don’t have any alternative.”
Sir David added: “The problems of the next 20 to 30 years are major problems that are going to cause great social unrest and great changes in what we eat and how we live.”
He warned: “The problem you’re opening now is a very serious one. If the world climate change goes on, it is going to be facing huge problems with immigration.
“Large parts of Africa are going to be even less inhabitable than they are now, and there will be major upsets in the balance between our national boundaries.”
The BBC Blue Planet presenter also said he was “sorry” US president Donald Tr ump was dismissive of the climate threat, adding: “One hopes the electorate will respond.”
Sir David told the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee tackling the problems would require changes to people’s lifestyles, such as diet and reducing air travel.
He admitted that when he began making documentaries he did not believe it was possible people could change the climate – but had been forced to alter his views.
Sir David told MPS the growing voice of younger people, including some there to hear him, was a source of hope, adding: “It’s their futures that are in our hands. We’ve got to change our lifestyle.”
It’s their futures that are in our hands… we’ve got to change SIR DAVID ON IMPACT OF CLIMATE ON THE YOUNG