1 . For many Generation Z students who are thinking about their future careers, the answer is clear: disposing of the climate crisis. Multiple surveys have found that enormous numbers of students and professionals under 25 are pursuing environmental-related degrees and careers.

This shift in career aspirations (抱负) among the world’s youngest workers is a reflection of the heightened sense of climate awareness among Generation Z and even Generation Alpha — the generation of children born between 2011 and 2025. A 2021 Pew Research survey found that among Generation Z individuals, 76 percent of them cited climate change as one of their biggest social concerns, and 32 percent participated in at least one major environmental action last year.

Seeing the demand for climate action and training among students, universities are matching their interests with initiatives like the university of Southern California’s Sustainability Across the Curriculum programme. The programme aims to teach students from all disciplines how their majors intersect (与……相关联) with sustainability and the environment.

Christopher Schlottmann, the global curriculum coordinator (课程协调员) at New York University’s Environmental Studies programme explains to The Guardian that the long-standing opinion that environmental careers don’t pay well is also changing. “There’s a general belief that if you do good for the world, nobody’s going to pay you to do it. I don’t think that’s that accurate,” he says. “If you understand how climate change works, then a bank should actually really want to talk to you because they want to reduce their risk.”

The United States Bureau of Labour Statistics predicts that job opportunities for environmental scientists and “related specialists” will grow by eight percent over the next decade. This change is expected to be pushed along by the establishment of the proposed Civilian Climate Corps, a programme which would help young people fight the climate crisis and conserve public lands with training and job placement.

Climate change is a tough challenge, but climate awareness and determination grow with each generation and this progress demonstrates that the youngest citizens are staking (拿……当赌注) their future on a healthier planet.

5 . Two and a half months before the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season officially begins, and almost six months before it enters its peak (高峰), weathermen are already predicting (预测) that it could be particularly active.

Officially, hurricane season begins from June 1 and runs through November. One reason is that sea surface temperatures in the tropical (热带的) Atlantic are already at record highs.

Meanwhile, another significant potential factor in this year’s hurricane season is taking shape thousands of miles away in the Pacific. Over periods ranging from three to seven years, the waters of the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean warm and cool in turn as a result of a repeating climate pattern called the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). El Niño makes Atlantic hurricanes less likely to form but La Niña does.

During the 2023 season, ENSO was in an El Niño period. However, by the time the 2024 season starts, it will have changed into a “neutral(中立)” period, but that by the peak months, it is likely to have changed fully into a La Niña.

“How quickly that change occurs can affect everything as well,” says DaSilva, a lead hurricane weatherman. “There’s a lag time. So, while we expect the change to occur in mid-summer, it may not be until late summer or fall where we really see those effects across the Atlantic basin.” As a result, he says, this year’s hurricane season could remain particularly active deep into November.

Of course, no report can predict when individual storms will come or the paths they will take, but DaSilva warns that those who live in areas likely to suffer hurricanes, especially around the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, should prepare. “If a tropical storm system comes into this area, it could rapidly strengthen, potentially close to land,” he also warns. “And that’s why people need to be careful and have their hurricane plans ready. Because any system with these kinds of conditions can explode very quickly. That’s what we’re concerned about.”

6 . As the sweet smell of pears and apples spreads in the air, drawing a stream of visitors to the orchard (果园) in Karamay’s Baijiantan district, an elderly man is seen doing the rounds of it on an electric bike. Sometimes, he stops to water the trees or prune (修剪) the grass, determined to ensure every single tree reaches its full ________.

The ________ of this forest was once a dump (垃圾场). It was the man, Wang Yanming, who planted the trees many years ago, creating the shade visitors can now all enjoy on hot summer afternoons. Wang oversees the greening work, planting trees and flowers, and often helps people to remove ________ from the dump.

“In ________ days, strong wind turn sand particles and tiny rocks into arrows that ________ our hands and faces. I ________ wanted to do something to improve the situation,” Wang tells China Daily. Inspired by his ________, workers from nearby factories ________ the example, turning afforestation (造林) into a trend in the desert and wilderness soon made way for green forests.

Wang’s continuous effort over the decades ________ a wasteland into a green forest in the middle of the Gobi Desert. It is quite ________ that the orchard is called Yanming Park after the 90-year-old. Yanming Park has become an informal ________ centre for youth. Young men and women often come to listen to stories told by Wang and his teammates about the ________ of the olden days.

“I am glad to have made a small contribution to protect the environment ________. I feel delighted when my green mission ________ others to care for nature. I hope our community spirit will be ________ for generations and that Karamay will stay evergreen,” says Wang.

8 . Chaudhary weaves (编织) together lengths of rope and grass collected from the nearby riverbank in her village, skillfully shaping the materials into a gift box while instructing a group of women to follow suit.

The ropes being used were once the lifeline for mountain climbers tackling Nepal’s mountains and were then cast away. Diverse measures to remove such discarded materials have rocketed since 2019, when the government launched Clean Mountain Campaign.Around 140,000 tons of waste were collected on Mt. Everest alone, which were handled accordingly, either securely buried or recycled.

Some waste is now finding fresh life, transformed by skilled hands like Chaudhary’s into items to sell, thanks to an initiative led by Acharya, an owner of a waste processing business and an advocate for sustainable waste management. She has been working with the cleaning campaign, aiming at mountains like Mt. Everest.

“Metal waste goes through the recycling process, but we weren’t capable of recycling these ropes and cooking gas cans,” Acharya says. It didn’t occur to her that the waste which couldn’t be recycled could be reused until she met Rai at an art exhibition and a solution emerged.

Rai, a businessman dealing in craftworks, helped connect Acharya with Chaudhary and her team of craftswomen in hopes of unlocking the economic value of the mountain waste. With flexible hours, the project gives the craftswomen an opportunity to earn money even as they maintain their household responsibilities.

“While this seems insignificant compared to waste in the mountains, it’s a start. We can’t supply sufficient raw material with waste sorting and cleaning processes taking plenty of time and money,” Acharya says, desperate to expand the program to involve more women and treat more waste. But progress has been slow. “We need investment to mechanize the cleaning and processing of waste in the initial phase to provide the crafting team with enough materials to meet their demand,” she adds.

9 . As I stand in my favorite craft store, I’m faced with choices that mirror the world outside. You see, I love my foam (泡沫橡胶) board, which has foam inside and is sandwiched between two layers of paper or plastic. It’s easy to work with and affordable, but not friendly to the environment. Or take a look at the paintbrushes. The plastic handle brushes are cheap while the brushes with wooden handles cost a fair bit more.

Glues are the unsung heroes of my art, yet their plastic containers are far from eco-friendly. And don’t get me started on the packaging that these art supplies come in. It’s all plastic, and it’s a reminder that even in the art world, being green isn’t always easy.

As an artist, I’m not exactly rolling in profits. Most of what I earn goes right back into my materials, leaving little room for choosing green materials. Fresh out of university, I am still searching for a job. Since I currently don’t have a regular income, I’m living with my family to save costs and paying careful attention to what I can afford. But I also care deeply about climate change, since I’ve seen its impact and can’t bear the thought of it getting worse.

So, to reduce my personal impact on climate change while also living within my means, I make full use of my brushes until they’re on their last hair, and I’ve become a master at repurposing cardboard boxes and various packing materials. The firm plastic packaging that once housed my paints finds a second purpose as glass in my miniature (微型的) windows. The cardboard from those boxes’ serves as bases for a range of miniatures. I don’t waste a bit of foam board either; it’s kept for crafting mini-books for my sets.

It’s an ongoing process — a journey of give and take. While I try to reduce my ecological footprint, I am also learning to balance practicality while enjoying creating my own art.

10 . Antarctica and the sub-Antarctic islands are remote, rocky and endlessly fascinating. The wildlife encounters are quietly breathtaking and the scenery is amazing. The chance to experience this special region on an adventure voyage is both an advantage and an inspiration, and now also an opportunity to give back by getting involved in scientific research.

Citizen science — where you help scientists collect data that feeds into important research projects — gathers valuable data for making informed decisions about urgent issues like climate change and wildlife conservation. “It gave the trip more purpose.” is in the words of one citizen scientist.

Becoming a citizen scientist is simple. All of our polar voyage partners operate citizen science programmes on their ships. Fun, interactive and informative, they are completely voluntary and no prior scientific knowledge is required. It’s about sharing new discoveries and deepening your connection to the natural world with small groups of like-minded people.

On a typical citizen science programme, you will usually be invited to participate in at least one session on most days. A typical day might involve a seabird count at 14:00 and a cloud survey at 18:00. Or you might be photographing whales and noting their unique markings. In addition, a citizen science coordinator (协调员) will arrange short lectures.

Take two examples from Polar Latitudes (the first to offer citizen science projects in the polar regions), and their ship the Seaventure: citizen scientists studying cloud formations in Antarctica have provided a great deal of information about how global warming is deeply impacting climate change. Just a few readings taken during the course of each voyage have resulted in a wealth of data. Thousands of whale tail photos taken by citizen scientists, meanwhile, provided data that was crucial to the creation of a 20,000-sq-km slow-down zone to reduce ship strikes.

There are often multiple chances to collaborate (协作) on different projects during your voyage and on-board citizen science coordinators will keep you posted on the projects you can participate in each day.