BBC 6分钟英语学习 寻找乌托邦

English from BBC Learning English. Hello.

This is 6 min English from BBC Learning English.

I'm Rob and I'm Georgina. In this program, we're looking for Utopia.

You mean a perfect world, a place where everyone lives together in harmony?

Does

that kind of place exist? Rob Probably not, but it's something we aspire to create, a happy place where everyone is cared for and nobody goes without Well, let me know if you find it, and I'll head there straight away.

Well, one place that is trying to be like that is the Dutch city of Amsterdam.

We're going to be finding out what they're doing with the help of some donuts.

But 1st Georgina, I have a perfect question for you.

According to the 2020 United Nations World Happiness Report, which country is the world's happiest?

Is it a finland? B Singapore or c Austria?

That's tricky, but I imagine that, if only for the scenery, it's a cinland.

Okay, georgina, I'll tell you if you are right, all wrong, later on.

Anyway, let's get back to Amsterdam, a city that's doing its best to use creative ideas to be sustainable.

That's right. And it's using the concept of a ring donor to use as a matter for its sustainability.

Economist Kate Rayworth, who we will hear from shortly, describes us as a picture of 21st century prosperity for humanity.

Now, thinking of this ring doughnut, the idea is not to leave anyone in the hole in the middle, falling short on the essentials of life, but at the same time, not going beyond the outer ring, because there we put so much pressure on our planetary home, it can cause climate change.

So here is Kate Rayworth speaking on the BBC World Service program, people Fixing the World, talking about how Amsterdam is trying to fit into this doughnut approach.

Amsterdam has started with the goal of saying, we want to be thriving, inclusive, regenerative city for all residents, while respecting planetary boundaries.

That's like saying we want our city to live in the donut.

And that changes how you build.

You don't bring in more new, raw materials from across the other side of the world, you say, right, how do we reuse the construction materials that are already in our city to build new buildings?

How do we change the way that people travel?

Start asking very different questions from the outdated economic mindset that they were taught before.

Interesting stuff from Kate Rayworth there.

The people of Amsterdam are trying to live within the doughnut.

Their aim is to live and look after each other without harming the planet.

It's a big aim. But they want their city to be thriving, so growing and being successful.

And it wants to be inclusive, including everyone and treating them equally.

This is beginning to sound like Utopia.

Rob To achieve this, kate talked about using locally sourced materials for building, and think about how people travel around, basically making it a sustainable city.

It's about people thinking differently and not doing things in the same way they've always been done.

It involves changing the way people think or their mindset.

Another idea from the Netherlands that fits the doughnut model is the making of recycled genes.

The people fixing the World program visited a company where old genes were mixed with new organic cotton to make new ones.

The new ones might not be affordable for everyone, but they do reduce cotton production and the use of chemicals and water.

The process creates jobs, too. Well, let's hear from Bert Vanson, CEO of Mud Genes.

Listen to why he tries to work within the doughnut model.

If you take the donut economy and you see the inside of the circles, if you break that boundary, mistreat people, and you have people making your genes, but they don't have any social security or any liberty, or any medical care or those kind of things.

You will never be able to make nice genes.

It has to become human again making clothing.

Bert Vanson sees the benefit of the donut economy by treating people fairly and with respect.

The opposite is to mistreat. He thinks they should have things such as social security, a payment system by governments that helps people live a reasonable life.

And he says, you can't make nice genes without being human.

He doesn't just mean being a person, but being someone with compassion, feelings and respect for others.

All this from a doughnut. Hopefully this will lead to a happier city and country.

But for now, what is the happiest country in the world?

Georgina? Yes, you ask me earlier, according to the 2020 United Nations World Happiness Report, which country has been named the world's happiest?

And I said, finland. Come on, make me happy and tell me IM right.

Well, happily you are correct. Well done.

Finland is top of the list for the 3rd year in a row, with Denmark coming in 2nd.

But before you head off there, we need to recap some of the vocabulary

we've discussed today. Of course, we've been discussing Utopia a perfect place where everyone lives together in harmony.

Thriving describes something that is growing and successful and inclusive means including everyone and treating them equally.

We also mentioned mindset, that describes the fixed thoughts and attitudes someone has to mistreat someone is to treat them badly or cruelly.

And Social Security is a payment system by governments that helps people live a reasonable life.

Okay, well, that's all for this program.

We'll see you again soon for more trending topics and vocabulary here at six minute English.

Bye for now.

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