Pourquoi les villes sont responsables et victimes de ces crises ? (et quoi faire pour les changer)

Duration: 4:51 801 transcript words EN summary

Video summary

The battle against climate change will ultimately be decided within cities, which occupy only 3% of Earth's surface yet house over half the global population and generate more than 80% of GDP. While these urban centers are hubs for progressive decision-making that can benefit society and the environment, they simultaneously bear a disproportionate burden as responsible for three-quarters of global energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. This dual role makes cities both primary drivers of environmental degradation and among the most vulnerable locations on the planet, facing severe threats from heat waves, floods, pandemics, financial instability, and impending shortages of water and food that current infrastructure is ill-equipped to handle. The core argument presented in this video is that technical fixes like electrifying mobility or insulating homes are necessary but insufficient if they do not address the root causes of socio-ecological crises. To truly transform our relationship with the planet within planetary boundaries, we must first understand what has locked us into unsustainable patterns and how city metabolism functions systemically. The speaker introduces their new book as a synthesis of scientific knowledge designed to diagnose these impacts quantitatively while offering a practical compass for change; it aims not only to reduce pollution but also to ensure social and environmental justice by reimagining how we inhabit our territories in a circular, self-sufficient manner. To bring this vision to life beyond the pages of the book, the creator is launching a crowdfunding campaign that will finance professional illustrations and an original mural depicting sober, sustainable futures for communities. Once initial funding goals are met, the project plans to expand into three major initiatives: recording twelve new podcast episodes with leading scientists to explore tomorrow's territories, creating a traveling exhibition featuring prospective murals on current and future urban metabolism, and producing a documentary film covering the past, present, and potential future of cities. These efforts are designed to move beyond simple publication by fostering active dialogue and providing tangible tools for communities to visualize and implement radical transformation in their local areas. The ultimate goal is to mobilize public support during critical political moments like upcoming municipal and presidential elections to influence elected officials directly. By organizing conferences, exhibitions within town halls or corporate premises, and engaging citizens in open discussions about the future of their territories, this initiative seeks to turn abstract concepts into concrete action plans for sustainability. The video concludes with a call to join an adventure that radically transforms how we live, urging viewers to participate in building fairer, circular, and self-sufficient communities before these opportunities pass again after the current election cycles conclude.

Read the full video transcript

The climate battle will be won or lost in cities. As UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres noted , cities occupy only 3 % of the Earth's surface but are home to more than 50% of the world's population. It is in these cities that more than 80% of the world's GDP is produced. So , this is where all decisions are made, whether positive or negative, but above all where the right progressive decisions for society are made. and the environment. At the same time, cities are responsible for 75% of global energy consumption , 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and above all, cities are among the most fragile and vulnerable places on the planet. Cities face heat waves, floods, pandemics, and financial crises. They are not prepared for these water shortages, for these food shortages, and for all the shortages to come. But how did we get here and what can we do to deal with climate change and the socio-ecological crises to come? We can electrify mobility, we can adopt agroecological principles, we can insulate our homes. All of this is necessary, but it is clearly insufficient. In reality, without addressing the root causes of socio-ecological issues, we will at best postpone or externalize the problems. If we want to address these problems at their root, we must first try to understand what has locked us into this situation and understand how cities actually work in order to propose sustainable solutions for the future. My name is Aristi d'Athanasiadis and you may already know me through the Circul Metabolism podcast. This podcast interviewed more than 130 experts and researchers to better understand what is called the metabolism of territories and societies, or how they consume and pollute, and how to reduce this pollution and consumption in a systemic, fair, and contextualized way. For years I have been looking for a book that contains both quantified diagnoses of the socio-ecological impact of cities and territories, but that also offers a compass for transforming our ways of inhabiting territories within planetary boundaries, while guaranteeing social and environmental justice for all. That's why I wrote this book. It summarizes and synthesizes the scientific knowledge I have been able to read and produce to help you understand the complex functioning or metabolism of our territories in order to identify what blocks or promotes their transformation. After 2 years of writing and 1 year of illustration, the book will be published in mid-September by Apogé, a publishing house specializing in urban planning. And that's why we're opening this crowdfunding campaign on Tipi. You will find the link in the comments and description of this video. This campaign is being launched primarily to finance Gaetanossé, who produced all his illustrations, graphics, the book's cover page, and an original mural to imagine what a more sober territory could look like . circular and self-sufficient. But this is only the beginning. To ensure this book has a real impact, we want to build a series of events and projects around it. Once we have passed the first milestone of €25,000, we will use the funds to develop three new projects. First, the recording of 12 podcast episodes with your favorite scientists to imagine the territories of tomorrow. These episodes will be open to the public, so with you, in order to exchange ideas after the recordings. Secondly, the creation of a travelling exhibition on the theme of the book which will have illustrations from the book but also prospective cross-section murals on the present and future metabolism of the territories. Thirdly, the production of a 40-50 minute documentary on the past, present and future of cities and territories. To implement all these projects, we need your support and we are offering many rewards. We obviously offer to send you a signed book, but you can also participate in the various podcast recordings in public and we can even organize a conference in your premises if you are a company, a community or an association. And if you are interested, we propose to set up an exhibition in your premises if you are a town hall or a company to fully immerse yourself in the theme of the book through the illustrations and the mural that we are building. For those of you who have been following my work for several years, now is the time to get involved and join this adventure to radically transform our territories. The municipal elections are behind us, the presidential elections are just ahead of us. Help us come to your town hall, your municipality, your territory to talk with your elected officials and with you about the future of your territory to make it sustainable, fair, circular and self-sufficient. Thank you very much and see you very soon at your place.