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If you told me five years ago
如果你在5年前告诉我，
that today I'd be delivering a talk about our individual power to make a difference, I would have cringed.
我今天会在这里就个人的努力如何影响这个世界发表演讲，我一定会感到局促不安的。
It was my job to study huge global systems. I was a researcher at NASA using satellite data to study the big picture.
我之前的工作是研究大型全球系统。我曾是NASA（美国国家航空航天局）的一名研究者，通过卫星数据来研究宏观世界。
You can see a lot of things from space,
在太空中，你能观察到很多东西，
like every ecosystem on Earth being threatened from pretty much every angle and global inequality in air and water safety.
你能从各个角度看到，地球上的每个生态系统都在遭受威胁，还有全球在空气质量和用水安全方面的不平等现象。
These kinds of things would keep me up at night.
这些情况使我夜不能寐。
And then outside of work,
在工作以外的时间里，
I'd use this bird's-eye view while thinking about our huge social structures like education and media and health care,
我也会用这种全景视角去思考关于大型社会结构的问题，像是教育、媒体和医疗，
and it looked to me like they were all really struggling, too.
在我看来，这些领域的情况也不容乐观。
So I felt like the world was just trapped in this huge self-amplifying system that was just spiraling towards destruction.
好像这个世界被困在了一个自我持续恶化的系统中，急速走向灭亡。
And of course I wanted to do something about this, and I felt so small and utterly powerless.
我当然想做点什么来改变这一切，但我又觉得自己是那么的渺小与无助。
But I started to feel a little differently as my perspective shifted from the macro towards the micro.
但自从我把视角从宏观转向微观之后，我开始觉得有些不一样了。
It began with bumblebees.
这一切都要从大黄蜂开始说起。
I was using satellite imagery and field research to study these amazing, cute pollinators
我当时在通过卫星图片和实地调查来研究这些神奇、可爱的授粉昆虫，
to see how they were doing in the midst of their own environmental crisis in Southern California.
想看看它们是怎样解决自己的种群在南加州所遇到的环境危机的。
And from the macro view, I saw 22-lane freeways,
从宏观的视角，我看到的是22车道的高速公路，
endless suburban sprawl and water being diverted from parched rivers to grow lawns in the desert. It was pretty grim.
无边无际的郊区，水被从干涸的溪流引调到沙漠以灌溉草地。这种情况让人感到沮丧。
But on the ground, there were actually some small opportunities for optimism,
但事实上，还是有些情况能让我们保持乐观，
these tiny patches of resources known as "habitat fragments."
这些被称作“栖息地区块”的小型土地资源。
If the right kinds of plants were growing along the edges of a Costco parking lot,
如果合适的植物能被种植在好市多超市的停车场边缘，
and if in the neighborhoods nearby there were native plants in people's gardens,
如果在附近的居民区，本地植物能被种植在人们的花园中，
and in the canyons that were too steep for people to put their suburbs in, there were native plants instead of grasses
在陡峭的、不适合人类居住的峡谷中能种上些本地的植物来替代野草，
then all of these in-between spaces would actually add up to create a network of habitat fragments.
那么所有的这些过渡空间就能构建起一个由“栖息地区块”组成的网络。
And this network meant that the bees could traverse through the concrete desert feeding from and pollinating the native plants.
这个网络的形成意味着蜜蜂能横越“混凝土沙漠”，从本地植物中采集食物，并为其授粉。
And these plants that the bees depend on and that the bees sustain are essential.
这些蜜蜂所依赖和维持着的植物起着关键的作用。
They stabilize our steep hillsides.
它们使陡峭的山坡趋于稳定。
They provide food and homes to thousands of amazing species of animals,
它们为上千种神奇的动物提供着食物与住所，
and, critically, they are helping to curb our devastating cycle of wildfires
同时也是很重要的一点，它们还能抑制极具毁灭性的野火循环，
by preventing the growth of those invasive grasses that fuel the vicious flames that we're all too familiar with.
通过阻止外来入侵的草种的生长，这些草种助长了我们所熟悉的恶性火焰。
It's a really vital and interconnected system,
这是个非常重要且相互关联的系统，
and some people could see how they were a part of it, and so they acted as habitat fragment gardeners.
有些人明白他们自己也是其中的一部分，于是他们开始自觉担任“栖息地区块”园丁的角色。
They planted native plants in their yards,
他们在自己的院子里，
and they even were tending to the land in corporate parks and in public canyons.
甚至在企业园区和面向公众开放的峡谷中种植本地植物。
In my research, I could actually see the impact that even one passionate gardener could make.
在我的研究中，我确确实实能看到哪怕只有一位热心的园丁都能产生的积极影响。
And then, repeated across the region, their habitat fragments were adding up to make a more resilient ecosystem
随后，这些园丁还不断在同一区域种植更多的植物，他们的“栖息地区块”加在一起组成了一个更具适应力的生态系统，
not a perfect system, not by a long shot,
这虽然还远不是一个完美的系统，
but at least a system that was less likely to totally collapse under impending pressures like further development and drought.
但至少在即将到来的进一步开发和干旱性气候中不那么容易崩溃。
So I was looking at the world through this lens
我当时就是通过这些视角观察这个世界的，
when I found myself in the waiting room of a public hospital in Brooklyn with my partner, Charles.
有一天，我和搭档查尔斯在布鲁克林一家公立医院的等候室里坐着。
We were sitting across from a group of teenagers who were slumped in their chairs
我们对面的一群青少年瘫坐在椅子上，
and bored out of their minds and just refreshing their phones over and over again.
显得很无聊，只是一味的刷着手机。
And in a neighborhood with some of the lowest high school graduation rates in the city,
这间等候室位于这座城市高中毕业率最低的社区之一，
this waiting room felt like a social habitat fragment just waiting to happen.
在我看来，这里就是一个可被改造的社会“栖息地区块”。
So, we did some research to see what kinds of resources could we add to spaces like this one that would make an impact.
所以我们做了些调查，看看为这样的空间加入哪些资源能产生些积极影响。
And we settled on museums. Museums are the most trusted source of public information,
我们最终选定了博物馆。博物馆是公众最信赖的信息来源，
more than the media and more than the government, but they also cluster in wealthier neighborhoods.
公众对博物馆的信任多于对媒体与政府的信任，但它们通常聚集在更富有的社区中。
New York has 85 museums in Manhattan, and the Bronx has eight,
纽约的曼哈顿有85家博物馆，而布朗克斯只有8家，
even though these two boroughs have almost the same size population.
尽管这两个市区有着近乎一样数量的人口。
And then expensive tickets mean that a lot of people can't go to museums even if they live nearby.
而且昂贵的门票意味着很多人就算住在博物馆附近也去不了。
And these little injustices, they just go on and on
这些细微的不公平现象会一直持续下去，
and they add up to create sweeping inequalities in knowledge and empowerment.
直到最终在知识与权力方面造成大范围的不平等。
Across the US, almost 90 percent of visitors to art museums are white,
纵观整个美国，艺术博物馆参观者中近乎90%都是白人，
and even at the Smithsonian's network of free museums,
即使是史密森博物馆体系中免费的博物馆，
almost half of their adult visitors have graduate degrees, which, like, 10 percent of the broader population has.
成年参观者中近乎一半都有研究生学位，而所有人口中仅有10%的人有研究生学位。
So it became clear to us that even though museums are these amazing educational and social resources,
所以我们意识到，尽管博物馆是绝佳的教育与社会资源，
they're not reaching everyone.
但是它们的受众范围很窄。
And a lot of museums are aware of this, and they're trying to change it,
其实有很多博物馆意识到了这点，也在试图改变这种状况，
but there's all these structural hurdles that are slowing them down.
但有太多结构上的阻碍在拖慢他们的进度。
So we set out to create a distributed network of museum habitat fragments.
所以我们就开始着手创建一个由博物馆“栖息地区块”所组成的分布式网络。
Working from a donated shipping container with the volunteer help of our friends
通过大家捐赠的运输纸箱，来自朋友们的无偿帮助
and dozens of very generous scientists from all across the globe,
和全球各地数十位慷慨的科学家的帮助，
we built our first prototype: the Smallest Mollusk Museum.
我们造出了第一个雏形：世界上最小的软体动物博物馆。
Mollusks are these tentacled, slimy shape-shifters like oysters and octopuses and the giant squid,
软体动物指的是那些有触角的，黏糊糊的变化多端的生物，像是牡蛎，章鱼，还有巨型乌贼，
and if you've ever seen an alien in a movie, then I'll bet you it was inspired by a mollusk.
如果你曾在电影中见过外星人的形象，我敢保证，那一定是受到了软体动物的启发。
Their slimy sci-fi vibes make them really fun tour guides for a biology museum,
它们黏糊糊的形象所营造出的科幻氛围，很适合作为生物博物馆的有趣向导，
and they can teach us about the systems that we all share, with a wake-up call.
它们也能教育我们关于我们共享的生态系统的知识，给我们敲响警钟。
Of all the animal extinctions documented since the 1500s, more than 40 percent have been our friends, the mollusks.
自十六世纪起，有记载的已灭绝生物中，超过40%都是我们的朋友，软体动物。
So we tested this museum across the city to see if it resonated with all kinds of visitors, and it did.
我们在城市的各地测试了这个博物馆的效果，想看看它是否能吸引各种各样的参观者，效果很不错。
People really liked learning from it.
人们真的很喜欢能从中学到些什么。
So we built a fleet of tiny science museums,
所以我们后来又建了一系列微型科学博物馆，
each one small enough to fit into preexisting locations with information dense enough that they could still pack a punch.
每个都小到能够放置于现有空间，但同时也蕴含着足够大的知识容量来聚集很多参观者。
And they're modular, so they can be distributed at a scale that can reach everyone.
它们是模块状的，意味着可以被分散放置于能被所有人接触到的范围。
And then we partnered with libraries and community centers and transit hubs and the public hospitals
我们还和图书馆、社区中心、交通枢纽，还有公立医院进行合作，
so that we could transform their in-between spaces into habitat fragments for social learning.
将它们的过渡空间也转变成了供社会学习的“栖息地区块”。
And, fittingly, we named our fleet of museums "MICRO."
我们给该系列博物馆起了一个恰当的名字：“MICRO”。
Even though each habitat fragment is small, it provides the essentials.
尽管每个“栖息地区块”都很小，却提供了必要的一切。
It draws people in so that they can explore and learn together in a social way.
它们能吸引人群的注意，让他们以一种社交方式和他人一起学习、探索。
And then, distributed across the landscape, we're able to invite people everywhere into conversations around science.
后来我们还将它们分散放置于城市景观中，让所有人都能探讨跟科学有关的话题。
When we partnered with a public hospital in the South Bronx, we became the Bronx's first and only science museum.
当我们和南布朗克斯区的一家公立医院合作时，我们成了当地唯一的一家科学博物馆。
Yeah, that's really weird.
没错，那真的太诡异了。
And really quickly, families started coming by with their kids and schools started arranging field trips,
很快的，很多家长会带着孩子来参观，学校开始组织户外教学，
all to this tiny museum in the front lobby of the public hospital.
大家都聚集到这家公立医院前厅的小博物馆。
And the museum became so popular that we started hiring local students to be museum docents,
这个博物馆后来变得太受欢迎，以至于我们不得不招募一些当地学生来当讲解员，
so they could lead tours and activities for all the talented kids.
来为这些有才华的孩子作向导，组织活动。
And every spark of curiosity that we're able to fuel and each new fact learned and every new friend made at the museum
我们所能激发的每份好奇心，所传授的每个新知识，他们在博物馆结交到的每个新朋友，
and every kid who can have a meaningful and important after-school job, it all contributes to a stronger system.
每个多了一份有重要意义的课后工作的孩子，都会助其成为一个更强健的系统。
So today, I try to keep the MICRO view in mind.
现在，我依然以这种微观视角思考问题。
I'm always examining how small actions can add up to create shifts at the macro scale of systems.
我总是想看看微小的行动能如何促成宏观系统的转变。
And honestly, I'm seeing a lot of really good things.
事实上，我看到了很多积极的转变。
There are habitat fragments everywhere, nurtured by talented, passionate, strategic individuals in groups of all sizes,
在每个角落，我都能看到由规模不同，但都才华横溢、富有热情的组织所建造的“栖息地区块”，
who are building towards systems with more equal access to food and employment,
它们在试着打造一个更具公平性的系统，在食物、就业、
health care, housing, political empowerment, education and healthy environments.
医疗、住房、政治权力、教育以及健康环境等多个方面。
One by one, together, we're filling gaps, strengthening the systems that we're all a part of.
一步一步，肩并着肩，我们在填补这些空缺，让我们身处的社会系统变得更强健。
We have to work on the big institutions too, of course.
我们当然也得花功夫在大型机构上。
It's just that they're so slow, and we're living in the midst of rapid change. It's a defining feature of our time.
它们的发展太慢了，而我们又生活在急速的变化中。这是我们这个时代的一个决定性特征。
So maybe in some cases our small actions can be Band-Aids until the big guys catch up.
所以在某些情况下，我们的点滴行动在这些大家伙跟上之前可以起到创可贴的作用。
But without us, what are they going to be catching up to? Am I still scared about the world? Yes.
但如果没有我们，它们还会有追赶的目标吗？我还在担心着这个世界吗？是的。
That's why I'm talking to you. The world needs so many more habitat fragments.
这就是我来到这里的原因。这个世界需要更多的“栖息地区块”。
So, if you've been feeling overwhelmed or powerless lately,
所以如果你们最近觉得不知所措或无能为力，
then I'm asking you to please try this very small strategy on for size, and let's see how it goes.
我希望大家能试试这种小规模的策略，看看效果如何。
Step one: zoom in.
第一步:聚焦。
It's not one huge system that's just barreling unstoppably towards destruction.
现在并不只存在一个巨型系统在急速且持续的走向毁灭。
What we have are many overlapping systems, and the ways that they interact determine everything.
我们有太多互相重叠的系统了，它们彼此互动的方式决定着一切。
Step two: look for the resource gaps, because that's where you can make the biggest difference.
第二步：寻找资源缺口，因为那才是你能产生最大影响的地方。
And do some research to understand how your ideas are going to interact with the systems that are already on the ground.
记得做些调查，看看你的想法如何与现有的社会系统相互作用。
Step three: find the other habitat fragments.
第三步：寻找其他的“栖息地区块”。
Find out how they can support you and how you can support them, because we're building a network together.
看看你们能怎样相互协助，毕竟我们并不是在孤军奋战。
And step four: transform your fragment.
第四步：转变你的“栖息地区块”。
You might not have the leverage to change multiple systems at once,
你可能并没有能力同时改变多个系统，
but there are so many small, meaningful and strategic things that each of us can do.
但我们每个人都可以做很多微小的、有意义的、策略性的事情。
And there are a lot of us, so it will add up. Thank you.
而无数人的努力汇集在一起，就会实现实质性的改变。谢谢。
