We are revving up the remarkable American innovation machine that will be the basis of a new American prosperity. We will invent much improved methods to harness the sun, the wind, nuclear power, and capture and sequester the carbon dioxide emitted from our power plants. Advanced bio-fuels and the electrification of personal vehicles make us less dependent on foreign oil.
在未来的几十年中，我们几乎肯定会面对更高的油价和更严厉的二氧化碳排放政策。这是一场新的工业革命，美国有机会充当领导者。伟大的冰球选手韦恩·格雷茨基，当被问到他如何在冰上跑位时，他回答说：“我滑向球下一步的位置，而不是它现在的位置。”美国也应该这样做。
In the coming decades, we will almost certainly face higher oil prices and be in a carbon-constrained economy. We have the opportunity to lead in development of a new, industrial revolution. The great hockey player, Wayne Gretzky, when asked, how he positions himself on the ice, he replied,“ I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it’s been.” America should do the same.
奥巴马政府正在为未来美国的繁荣和可持续能源打下新的基础。但是我们还有很多不知道的地方。这就需要你们的参与。在本次演讲中，我请求在座各位哈佛毕业生加入我们。你们是我们未来的智力领袖，请花时间加深理解目前的危急局势，然后采取相应的行动。你们是未来的科学家和工程师，我要求你们给我们更好的技术方案。你们是未来的经济学家和政治学家，我要求你们创造更好的政策选择。你们是未来的企业家，我要求你们将可持续发展作为你们业务中不可分割的一部分。
The Obama administration is laying a new foundation for a prosperous and sustainable energy future, but we don’t have all of the answers. That’s where you come in. In this address, I am asking you, the Harvard graduates, to join us. As our future intellectual leaders, take the time to learn more about what’s at stake, and then act on that knowledge. As future scientists and engineers, I ask you to give us better technology solutions. As future economists and political scientists, I ask you to create better policy options. As future business leaders, I ask that you make sustainability an integral part of your business.
最后，你们是人道主义者，我要求你们为了人道主义说话。气候变化带来的最残酷的讽刺之一，就是最受伤害的人，恰恰就是最无辜的人——那些世界上最穷的人和那些还没有出生的人。
Finally, as humanists, I ask that you speak to our common humanity. One of the cruelest ironies about climate change is that the ones who will be hurt the most are the most innocent: the worlds poorest and those yet to be born.
这个最后乐章的完结部分是引用两位人道主义者的话。
The coda to this last movement is borrowed from two humanists.
第一段引语来自马丁·路德·金。这是1967年他对越南战争结束的评论，但是看上去非常适合用来评论今天的气候危机:
“我呼吁全世界的人们团结一心，抛弃种族、肤色、阶级、国籍的隔阂；我呼吁包罗一切、无条件的对全人类的爱。你会因此遭受误解和误读，信奉尼采哲学的世人会认定你是一个软弱和胆怯的懦夫。但是，这是人类存在下去的绝对必需……我的朋友，眼前的事实就是，明天就是今天。此刻，我们面临最紧急的情况。在变幻莫测的生活和历史之中，有一样东西叫做悔之晚矣。”
The first quote is from Martin Luther King. He spoke on ending the war in Vietnam in 1967, but his message seems so fitting for today’s climate crisis:
“This call for a worldwide fellowship that lifts neighborly concern beyond one’s tribe, race, class, and nation is in reality a call for an all-embracing and unconditional love for all mankind. This oft misunderstood, this oft misinterpreted concept, so readily dismissed by the Nietzsches of the world as a weak and cowardly force, has now become an absolute necessity for the survival of man… We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late.”
第二段引语来自威廉·福克纳。1950年12月10日，他在诺贝尔奖获奖晚宴上发表演说，谈到了世界在核战争的阴影之下，人道主义者应该扮演什么样的角色。
“我相信人类不会仅仅存在，他还将获胜。人类是不朽的，这不是因为万物当中仅仅他拥有发言权，而是因为他有一个灵魂，一种有同情心、牺牲和忍耐力的精神。诗人、作家的责任就是书写这种精神。他们有权力升华人类的心灵，使人类回忆起过去曾经使他无比光荣的东西——勇气、荣誉、希望、自尊、同情、怜悯和牺牲。”
The final message is from William Faulkner. On December 10th, 1950, his Nobel Prize banquet speech was about the role of humanists in a world facing potential nuclear holocaust.
“I believe that man will not merely endure, he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance. The poet’s, the writer’s, duty is to write about these things. It is his privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past.”
各位同学，你们在我们的未来中扮演举足轻重的角色。当你们追求个人的志向时，我希望你们也会发扬奉献精神，积极发声，在大大小小各个方面帮助改进这个世界。这会给你们带来最大的满足感。
Graduates, you have an extraordinary role to play in our future. As you pursue your private passions, I hope you will also develop a passion and a voice to help the world in ways both large and small. Nothing will give you greater satisfaction.
最后，请接受我最热烈的祝贺。希望你们成功，也希望你们保护和拯救我们这个星球，为了你们的孩子，以及未来所有的孩子。
Please accept my warmest congratulations. May you prosper, may you help preserve and save our planet for your children, and all future children of the world.
朱棣文（1948年2月28日—?）美国物理学家，生于美国圣路易斯；华人血统，祖籍中国江苏太仓，曾获得诺贝尔物理学奖（1997年）。现任美国能源部部长。
2009年6月4日他在著名学府哈佛大学的毕业典礼上发表演说。他语带诙谐地自谦表示，他的名气不够响亮，也非亿万富翁，或许不够格到哈佛发表演说，但至少他是一个“书呆子”（a nerd）。他严肃表示，他对找到可持续能源感到乐观。
