Episode 3

NARRATOR: THIS YEAR, THE WORLD'S BEST KNOWN CLIMATE ACTIVIST GRETA THUNBERG TURNED 18.

GRETA: PEOPLE SAY A LOT OF THINGS ABOUT ME.

DONALD TRUMP: GRETA.

YOU KNOW GRETA?

[CROWD LAUGHING, BOOING] GRETA, VOICE-OVER: PEOPLE CALL ME A BRAT, AN IDIOT.

AND YET FOR REASONS I DON'T UNDERSTAND, PEOPLE LISTEN WHEN I TALK.

[CHEERING AND APPLAUSE] YOU ARE LISTENING TO ME RIGHT NOW... [CROWD CHANTING, "GRETA"] BUT I DON'T WANT THAT.

I DON'T WANT YOU TO LISTEN TO ME.

I WANT YOU TO LISTEN TO THE SCIENCE.

MICHAEL MANN: THE CLIMATE CRISIS LITERALLY IMPACTS EVERY ASPECT OF THE EARTH SYSTEM AND HUMAN CIVILIZATION.

KATHERINE WILLIS: OUR PLANET'S GETTING HOTTER AND HOTTER AND HOTTER.

WOMAN: IF WE DO NOT DO SOMETHING ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE, WE ARE GOING TO BE HANDING A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT WORLD TO OUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN.

NARRATOR: THIS SERIES FOLLOWS GRETA ON AN EXTRAORDINARY YEAR IN HER MISSION TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE.

GRETA: I'VE BEEN GOING HALFWAY AROUND THE WORLD THE WRONG WAY.

NARRATOR: SHE'S TAKEN A YEAR OFF SCHOOL TO WITNESS FIRSTHAND THE IMPACT OF GLOBAL WARMING WITH THE WORLD'S LEADING CLIMATE EXPERTS... JOHN POMEROY: THIS YEAR, WE HAD THE FASTEST MELT RATE WE'VE EVER MEASURED, 6 METERS OF ICE DOWN.

NARRATOR: AND DISCOVER WHETHER TECHNOLOGY CAN HELP PROTECT OUR FUTURE.

YOU INJECT THE CO2 INTO ROCKS UNDERGROUND.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: WE SHOULD BE HOPEFUL, BUT HOPE DOESN'T COME FROM WORDS.

HOPE ONLY COMES FROM ACTION.

NARRATOR: GRETA'S TAKEN HER PROTEST TO THE GLOBAL STAGE.

GRETA: WORLD LEADERS ARE BEHAVING LIKE CHILDREN, SO IT FALLS ON US TO BE THE ADULTS IN THE ROOM.

NARRATOR: BUT IN A YEAR WHEN COVID-19 BROUGHT LIFE TO A STANDSTILL... GRETA: I HAVE CONTRACTED THE CORONAVIRUS.

NARRATOR: GRETA NOW HAS AN EVEN GREATER CHALLENGE.

CAN SHE CONVINCE A WORLD REELING FROM ONE CRISIS FINALLY TO FACE ANOTHER?

ANGEL HSU: COVID-19 HAS REALLY GIVEN THE WORLD A TREMENDOUS OPPORTUNITY TO RESET.

ANYA ELIZABETH JOHNSON: HOW WE ADDRESS THE CLIMATE CRISIS WILL DETERMINE WHAT THE FUTURE OF LIFE ON EARTH LOOKS LIKE.

GRETA: WE CAN ACT, BUT WE DON'T HAVE TIME TO WAIT.

♪ NARRATOR: GRETA HAS JUST UNDER 6 MONTHS BEFORE RETURNING TO SCHOOL.

SHE'S CONTINUING HER JOURNEY ACROSS EUROPE, EXAMINING THE LATEST SCIENCE TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE, AND SHE'S CALLING FOR ACTION.

HOLA, MADRID.

WORLD LEADERS ARE BETRAYING US, AND WE WILL NOT LET THAT HAPPEN ANYMORE.

NARRATOR: FRIDAYS FOR FUTURE, THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT SHE'S INSPIRED, HAS NOW GROWN TO OVER 14 MILLION FOLLOWERS WORLDWIDE.

GRETA: WORLD LEADERS ARE STILL TRYING TO RUN AWAY FROM THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES.

WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY CANNOT DO THAT.

[CHEERING AND APPLAUSE] NARRATOR: IN THE 2015 PARIS AGREEMENT, WORLD LEADERS PLEDGED TO HOLD THE INCREASE IN GLOBAL WARMING TO WELL BELOW 2 DEGREES CELSIUS AND PURSUE EFFORTS TO LIMIT IT TO 1.5 DEGREES.

IT'S CURRENTLY PREDICTED TO REACH 3 DEGREES BY THE END OF THE CENTURY.

GRETA: RIGHT NOW, WE DON'T SPEAK THE SAME LANGUAGE AS THE PLANET, SO WE CAN EITHER CHOOSE TO CONTINUE DOWN THIS ROAD, WHICH WILL LEAD TO A CLIMATE DISASTER, OR WE CAN CHOOSE A DIFFERENT PATH.

NARRATOR: GRETA IS HEADED TO BRUSSELS TO ADDRESS THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT.

♪ THE EU HAS ANNOUNCED ITS GREEN DEAL, WHICH AIMS TO REDUCE THE BLOC'S EMISSIONS TO NET ZERO BY 2050, BUT GRETA BELIEVES THIS ISN'T ENOUGH.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: PEOPLE COME UP TO ME AND SAY, "THE EU HAVE SET UP PLEDGES TO BE NET ZERO.

"THAT MUST BE A GOOD THING, RIGHT?

IT SOUNDS GOOD."

THAT'S BECAUSE PEOPLE AREN'T AWARE OF WHAT EMISSIONS THEY INCLUDE AND MOST IMPORTANTLY EXCLUDE.

THERE ARE SO MANY LOOPHOLES.

GRETA: IN NOVEMBER 2019, THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT SAID THAT THE EU WOULD LEAD AGAINST THE EXISTENTIAL THREAT OF THE CLIMATE CRISIS, AND YET WHEN THE EU PRESENTS THIS CLIMATE LAW NET ZERO BY 2050, YOU INDIRECTLY ADMIT SURRENDER, THAT YOU ARE GIVING UP, GIVING UP ON THE PARIS AGREEMENT, GIVING UP ON YOUR PROMISES, AND GIVING UP ON DOING EVERYTHING YOU POSSIBLY CAN TO ENSURE A SAFE FUTURE FOR YOUR OWN CHILDREN.

WE DON'T JUST NEED GOALS FOR 2050.

WE ABOVE ALL NEED THEM FOR 2020 AND FOR EVERY FOLLOWING YEAR TO COME.

YOU SAID THIS WAS AN EXISTENTIAL THREAT.

NOW YOU MUST PROVE THAT YOU MEAN IT.

[APPLAUSE] WOMAN: SWEDISH CLIMATE ACTIVIST GRETA THUNBERG HAS TOLD THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT THAT ITS PLANNED CLIMATE LAWS AMOUNT TO SURRENDER.

GRETA: THE PROBLEM IS THAT WE DON'T HAVE THE LUXURY OF TIME TO ACHIEVE THE HUGE EMISSION CUTS WE NEED IN ORDER TO STAY WITHIN THE 1.5 DEGREES CELSIUS.

WE DON'T HAVE THOSE DECADES.

JOHNSON: THE LATEST SCIENCE TELLS US IS MOST LIKELY THAT WE WILL EXCEED 1.5 DEGREES CELSIUS OF GLOBAL WARMING.

THAT DOESN'T MEAN WE GET TO GIVE UP, BECAUSE EVERY 1/10 OF A DEGREE MATTERS.

MANN: THOSE OF US WHO STUDY THE PROBLEM KNEW WE HAD A PROBLEM DECADES AGO, AND IF WE HAD ACTED THEN, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN MUCH EASIER TO AVOID DANGEROUS WARMING OF THE PLANET.

HSU: THERE'S STILL TIME FOR US TO CORRECT COURSE AND TO STILL ACHIEVE THE NECESSARY EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS THAT WE NEED IN ORDER TO AVOID DANGEROUS CLIMATE CHANGE, BUT IT HAS TO HAPPEN NOW.

WE REALLY ONLY HAVE 10 YEARS TO GET THIS RIGHT IF WE WANT TO HIT THIS 1.5 DEGREE TARGET.

NARRATOR: AS THE NEWS BULLETINS REPORT ON GRETA'S SPEECH, A NEW AND VERY DIFFERENT GLOBAL THREAT IS EMERGING.

GRETA: THE CORONAVIRUS WAS SOMETHING VERY DISTANT.

YOU STILL SHOOK HANDS, YOU DIDN'T KEEP SOCIAL DISTANCE, AND YOU DIDN'T WEAR A MASK.

MAN: NO, NO, NO.

WE HAVE NO CASES YET.

[CAMERA SHUTTERS CLICKING] GRETA, VOICE-OVER: IT NEVER CAME ACROSS THAT WE SHOULD NOT BE MEETING NEW PEOPLE OR THAT WE SHOULD NOT BE PROTESTING.

[CROWD CHANTING] WE HAD NO IDEA THAT THE BRUSSELS STRIKE WOULD BE THE LAST STRIKE.

MAN: ACROSS EUROPE, A WAVE OF COVID-19 INFECTIONS.

[SIREN] DIFFERENT MAN: AS CASES AND DEATHS RISE, MORE TOWNS MAY BE QUARANTINED.

DIFFERENT MAN: THE EUROPEAN UNION'S ENTIRE EXTERNAL BORDER WILL BE SEALED.

[INDISTINCT] NARRATOR: AS EUROPE GOES INTO LOCKDOWN, GRETA HAS DECIDED TO STOP CAMPAIGNING.

SVANTE: THAT'S IT.

LET'S GO.

NARRATOR: AND SHE AND HER FATHER SVANTE ARE HEADING HOME TO SWEDEN AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.

♪ ♪ GRETA: NOW I'M BACK HOME AFTER THE TRIP.

ME AND MY FATHER, WE HAVE ISOLATED OURSELVES AWAY FROM MY SISTER AND MOTHER BECAUSE WE STARTED FEELING SYMPTOMS AFTER MAYBE 3 DAYS, AND THEN IT GOT WORSE.

SVANTE, VOICE-OVER: I HAD, LIKE, A TEMPERATURE FOR TWO WEEKS AND A COUGH FROM HELL.

NEVER BEEN SO SICK IN MY LIFE.

GRETA WAS PLANNING TO GO ALL THESE PLACES.

NOTHING COULD BE DONE.

YOU COULD NOT TRAVEL ANYWHERE, AND SHE DECIDED STRAIGHTAWAY, YOU KNOW, "I'M GONNA SHUT EVERYTHING DOWN."

NARRATOR: AS THE PANDEMIC CONTINUES TO SPREAD ACROSS THE WORLD, PUBLIC PROTESTS AND MARCHES HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED, AND GRETA IS NOW ONLY CAMPAIGNING FROM HOME.

GRETA: OF COURSE, IT'S FRUSTRATING, BUT WE JUST HAVE TO ACCEPT THAT THIS IS AN EMERGENCY.

HI.

MY NAME IS GRETA THUNBERG.

I'M A CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENT ACTIVIST SPEAKING TO YOU FROM MY COUCH IN STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: EVERY WEEK, I POST MY NORMAL STRIKE PICTURE, BUT IT'S FROM HOME, SO IT'S LIKE CLIMATE STRIKE ONLINE WE'RE DOING NOW.

NARRATOR: WITH COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS LESS SEVERE IN SWEDEN THAN MANY OTHER COUNTRIES, GRETA IS ALLOWED TO VISIT A LOCAL RIDING STABLES, WHICH LETS YOUNG PEOPLE WITH AUTISM TAKE CARE OF ITS HORSES.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: THIS IS A VERY SPECIAL PLACE.

THIS IS A PLACE WHERE I ALWAYS FELT GOOD.

PEOPLE WITH AUTISM HAVE DIFFICULTY SPENDING TIME WITH PEOPLE, SO THE ANIMALS BECOME A SUBSTITUTE FOR THAT.

NARRATOR: AS A CHILD, GRETA WAS DIAGNOSED WITH ASPERGER'S SYNDROME, A FORM OF AUTISM, AND SHE'S ALSO EXPERIENCED MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES.

GRETA: AT THE AGE OF 11, I BECAME DEPRESSED, AND I STOPPED TALKING, AND THEN I STOPPED GOING TO SCHOOL AND STOPPED--OW--STOPPED EATING.

SVANTE: SHE SORT OF SHUT HERSELF INSIDE, AND IT HAPPENED WITHIN, LIKE, WEEKS, AND OF COURSE, YOU'RE TERRIFIED AT THE BEGINNING.

IF YOUR CHILD DOESN'T EAT... YOU KNOW, THEY STARVE.

GRETA: I SO MUCH DISLIKED ALMOST EVERYTHING WITH THIS WORLD WE LIVE IN WHERE EVERYONE TRIES TO BE THE SAME, AND...AND THINK THE SAME WAY.

I DIDN'T HAVE ONE SINGLE FRIEND EXCEPT MY SISTER AND MY DOGS AND THE HORSES.

SVANTE: AT SCHOOL, THEY WOULD TALK ABOUT THE CLIMATE ISSUE.

SHE COULD NOT GET THIS INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT WAS HAPPENING TO THE WORLD AND WHAT WE WERE DOING TO THE WORLD AND GO BACK TO A NORMAL LIFE, AND IT CHANGED EVERYTHING REALLY.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: I STARTED SCHOOL STRIKING, AND FOR SOME REASON, IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO, THE RIGHT TIMING, SO IT WAS VERY ACCIDENTAL.

IT WAS NOT ON PURPOSE.

I KNOW THAT SOON PEOPLE WILL LOSE INTEREST IN ME.

THAT'S ONLY NATURAL, BUT THAT ALSO MAKES IT SO IMPORTANT THAT I USE THIS TIME WHEN I CAN REACH OUT TO PEOPLE TO REACH AS MANY AS POSSIBLE.

WE CAN'T JUST FEEL LIKE THERE'S NO POINT, LET'S JUST GIVE UP.

THAT IS NOT AN OPTION.

WOMAN: SCIENCE IS FIGHTING BACK AGAINST THE NEW CORONAVIRUS.

DIFFERENT WOMAN: THERE ARE MORE THAN 100 POTENTIAL VACCINES BEING TESTED AT A COST OF BILLIONS OF POUNDS.

NARRATOR: THE PANDEMIC HAS LED TO A GLOBAL SHUTDOWN.

AIR TRAVEL HAS DRAMATICALLY REDUCED, FACTORIES HAVE CLOSED, AND ROADS AND FREEWAYS ARE EMPTY.

IN ONE OF THE MOST PROFOUND CHANGES TO HUMAN SOCIETY IN LIVING MEMORY...

THE IMPACT ON THE PLANET ITSELF IS BEING CALCULATED.

HELLO?

HI.

HOW ARE YOU?

FINE, AND YOU?

I'M GOOD.

I'M ALL GOOD HERE.

NARRATOR: DR. JENNY STAVRAKOU USES SATELLITE DATA TO MEASURE LEVELS OF NITROGEN OXIDE IN THE ATMOSPHERE CREATED BY BURNING FOSSIL FUELS AND A STRONG INDICATOR OF LEVELS OF CARBON DIOXIDE.

GRETA: DID YOU SEE A DROP IN THE EMISSIONS WHEN THE CORONAVIRUS FIRST HIT?

LET ME SHOW YOU A MAP.

SO THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS STARTED IN CHINA, AND FROM THE 23RD OF JANUARY, WE SEE A BIG DECREASE OF NITROGEN DIOXIDE LEVELS.

MORE THAN 50% IN SOME PLACES.

HAVE YOU EVER SEEN CHANGES THIS DRASTIC BEFORE?

SUCH A CHANGE WAS COMPLETELY UNPRECEDENTED.

WE HAD TO CHECK THE DATA WAS CORRECT.

NARRATOR: DR. STAVRAKOU'S DATA SHOWS THAT AS INDUSTRIALIZED NATIONS SHUT DOWN, EMISSIONS DROPPED SUBSTANTIALLY, IN PARTS OF THE U.S.A. BY UP TO 40%, BUT OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS, THE DATA WAS LESS ENCOURAGING.

SO FROM JANUARY SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE LOCKDOWNS UP TO APRIL, ON THE GLOBAL SCALE, THERE IS A DECREASE OF ABOUT 17% IN THE CO2 EMISSIONS OVER THIS PERIOD.

IT'S 17% LOWER THAN IN THE PREVIOUS YEAR.

AND WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME WE WERE DOWN AT THOSE KINDS OF EMISSIONS LEVELS?

WITH WHAT WE HAVE NOW, WE ARE BACK IN 2006 LEVELS.

SO THAT'S--THAT REALLY SHOWS THE SCOPE OF THE CHALLENGE THAT WE ARE FACING.

WHEN WE SHUT DOWN OUR SOCIETIES COMPLETELY, WE ONLY GO BACK, LIKE, 14 YEARS TO 2006.

MM-HMM.

SO YEAH.

IT'S REALLY SHOCKING.

NARRATOR: IN 2020, THE TOTAL EMISSIONS WERE AROUND 7% LOWER THAN IN 2019.

A UN REPORT FOUND THAT WE NEED TO DROP ON AVERAGE 7.6% YEAR ON YEAR FOR THE NEXT 9 YEARS TO BE ON TRACK TO LIMIT GLOBAL TEMPERATURE RISE TO 1.5 DEGREES.

GRETA: THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS PERHAPS THE MOST DIFFICULT, MOST COMPLEX ISSUE THAT HUMANITY HAS EVER FACED... AND THE LOCKDOWN HAS REALLY SHOWED US THE SCALE OF THE PROBLEM WE ARE FACING AND THAT THE TIME FOR SMALL STEPS IS LONG GONE.

AS SOON AS THE CONFINEMENT ENDS, THE EMISSIONS GO BACK, AND THAT'S BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T ACTUALLY CHANGED ANYTHING AROUND US.

EVERYTHING'S THE SAME, THE ROADS ARE THE SAME, THE CAR ARE THE SAME, THE INDUSTRIES ARE THE SAME, AND SO IT SHOWS THE LEVEL OF CHANGE WE NEED TO DO.

HSU: BUT COVID-19 DOES PROVIDE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US, TOO.

IT HAS GIVEN THE WORLD A LITTLE BIT OF A BOOST TO THEN IMPLEMENT THESE REALLY TOUGH CLIMATE POLICIES AND INFRASTRUCTURAL CHANGES THAT WILL BE ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY.

JILLIAN ANABLE: WHEN COVID-19 FIRST CAME ON THE SCENE, WE DIDN'T KNOW A LOT ABOUT IT.

WE HAD TO DO A LOT OF RESEARCH.

WITH CLIMATE CHANGE, WE ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT THE CAUSES ARE.

WE KNOW WHERE IT COMES FROM, SO ACTUALLY IN SOME WAYS, WE'RE IN A BETTER POSITION.

NARRATOR: WITH THE PANDEMIC HIGHLIGHTING THE SCALE OF THE CHALLENGE, GRETA IS SETTING OUT TO UNDERSTAND WHETHER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

RESEARCHERS HAVE BEEN EXPLORING WAYS TO REMOVE GREENHOUSE GASES FROM THE ATMOSPHERE, AND ONE OF THE LEADING PLANS IS TO REPLANT BILLIONS OF TREES ACROSS THE PLANET...

SO GRETA'S NOW ON HER WAY TO CENTRAL SWEDEN TO SEE HOW EFFECTIVE THIS COULD BE.

SHE'S MEETING DR. ACHIM GRELLE.

HE'S BEEN STUDYING THE IMPACT THAT FELLING AND REPLANTING TREES HAS ON CARBON DIOXIDE LEVELS.

SO HERE YOU SEE OUR TOWER.

UP THERE, WE HAVE OUR INSTRUMENTS.

GRETA: SO WHAT IS IT THAT YOU ARE TRYING TO MEASURE HERE EXACTLY?

WHAT WE MEASURE IS THE FLOW OF CARBON DIOXIDE BETWEEN THE FOREST AND THE ATMOSPHERE.

IT'S LIKE FOLLOWING THE FOREST BREATHING, YOU CAN SAY, AND THEN WE CAN CALCULATE THE LONG-TERM BUDGET OF CO2 GOING DOWN OR GOING UP.

SO THAT IS VERY INTERESTING BECAUSE RIGHT NOW LOTS OF PEOPLE THINK THAT YOU JUST NEED TO PLANT THE TREE AND, VOILA, IT SUCKS OUT THE CARBON, BUT IS IT REALLY THAT SIMPLE?

THE FOREST IS NOT A VACUUM CLEANER THAT JUST SUCKS CO2 FROM THE AIR.

IT'S MORE COMPLEX THAN THAT.

THERE ARE TWO LARGE FLOWS OF CARBON INTO THE FOREST BY PHOTOSYNTHESIS, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, YOU HAVE LOSSES OF CARBON BACK TO THE ATMOSPHERE.

YOU HAVE RESPIRATION BY THE PLANTS THEMSELVES, AND YOU HAVE RESPIRATION BY MICROBES THAT DECOMPOSE ORGANIC MATTER, AND IT'S THE BALANCE BETWEEN THOSE TWO THAT DECIDES IF IT'S A CARBON SINK, UPTAKE OF CARBON, OR THE CARBON SOURCE THAT LOSES CARBON.

NARRATOR: WHILE EACH NEW TREE ABSORBS CARBON DIOXIDE, ROTTING VEGETATION ON THE FOREST FLOOR AND EVEN THE TREES THEMSELVES RELEASE CARBON DIOXIDE BACK INTO THE ATMOSPHERE.

DR. GRELLE'S RESEARCH TRACKS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A FOREST IS CUT DOWN AND REGROWN AS IS COMMON IN MANY COMMERCIAL FORESTS.

IT'S REVEALED THAT A KEY FACTOR IN WHETHER A FOREST ABSORBS MORE CARBON DIOXIDE THAN IT EMITS IS ITS AGE.

GRETA: SO WHAT HAVE YOU FOUND?

BY DOING THESE MEASUREMENTS IN DIFFERENT FORESTS OF DIFFERENT AGES, WE SEE THAT THE FIRST YEARS AFTER CUTTING WHEN THE FOREST IS PLANTED, IT ONLY LOSES CARBON BECAUSE VERY MUCH IS LOST FROM THE SOIL, AND THAT KEEPS ON GOING FOR 10-15 YEARS, AND THEN IT STARTS TO ACCUMULATE CARBON, BUT IT TAKES ANOTHER 15 YEARS TO COMPENSATE FOR ALL THE LOSSES.

SO LET'S SAY IN 20-30 YEARS, THEN A FOREST FINALLY HAS BECOME WHAT WE CALL A CARBON SINK.

TODAY, MANY TALK ABOUT PLANTING TREES TO ABSORB CARBON, BUT THIS ACTUALLY SHOWS THAT IT WOULD TAKE QUITE A FEW DECADES FOR THOSE NEWLY PLANTED TREES TO ACTUALLY HAVE AN EFFECT.

EXACTLY.

MAN: TREE PLANTING CAN PLAY A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN REMOVING CARBON, BUT TREES ONLY GROW SLOWLY OVER DECADES.

WE NEED TO STOP DEFORESTATION BECAUSE HALF THE DRY WEIGHT OF A TREE IS CARBON.

WOMAN: SO THE MOST IMPORTANT FOREST BLOCKS GLOBALLY FOR CAPTURING CO2 AND STORING IT IN THE WOOD ARE THE TEMPERATE AND BOREAL FOREST AND THE TROPICAL RAINFOREST.

AND YET 64 MILLION ACRES OF FOREST IS LOST EACH YEAR GLOBALLY.

7,000 ACRES AN HOUR IS GOING.

LEWIS: WE NEED TO PROTECT WHAT WE'VE GOT AND TO RESTORE AREAS THAT HAVE BEEN DEFORESTED BECAUSE THAT'S ABOUT 11% OF EMISSIONS.

♪ NARRATOR: TREE PLANTING ISN'T THE ONLY METHOD CURRENTLY BEING PROPOSED TO REMOVE CARBON DIOXIDE FROM THE ATMOSPHERE.

BEFORE COVID RESTRICTIONS CAME INTO FORCE, GRETA TRAVELED TO HINWIL IN SWITZERLAND... WHERE, HIDDEN AWAY ON AN INDUSTRIAL ESTATE, A MACHINE IS TRYING TO DO WITH PIPES AND PUMPS WHAT TREES DO WITH BRANCHES AND LEAVES.

BUILT ON TOP OF A LOCAL WASTE INCINERATOR IS ONE OF THE WORLD'S FIRST DIRECT-AIR-CAPTURE PLANTS, DESIGNED TO SUCK CARBON DIOXIDE DIRECTLY OUT OF THE ATMOSPHERE.

HELLO.

HI.

HI, GRETA.

I'M JAN FROM CLIMEWORKS.

I'M GRETA.

NICE TO MEET YOU.

NICE TO MEET YOU.

WELCOME.

NARRATOR: DR. JAN WURZBACHER LEADS THE TEAM WHO BUILT IT.

WURZBACHER: THE PROCESS OF TAKING CO2 OUT OF THE AIR IS QUITE SIMPLE.

IN THESE CO2 COLLECTORS, THERE IS A FILTER MATERIAL, WHICH YOU SEE IN HERE.

IT'S LIKE A POWDER WITH A VERY HIGH SURFACE AREA, AND THERE ARE CHEMICALS ON THE SURFACE THAT CAPTURE CO2 FROM THE AIR.

NARRATOR: AS THE AIR IS DRAWN THROUGH THE COLLECTORS, THE FILTER MATERIAL INSIDE BONDS WITH CARBON DIOXIDE, REMOVING IT FROM THE ATMOSPHERE.

THE FILTERS ARE THEN HEATED TO RELEASE THE CO2, WHICH IS STORED IN TANKS BELOW.

GRETA: WHAT HAPPENS TO THE CO2 AFTER THIS PROCESS?

EVENTUALLY, WE INJECT THE CO2 INTO ROCKS UNDERGROUND.

AND YOU SEE ALL THESE WHITE PIECES IN THERE.

THAT'S ACTUALLY MINERALIZED CO2, WHICH IS BOUND IN THE ROCK.

AND YOU HAVE THIS STONE 700 METERS UNDERGROUND.

FROM A GEOLOGICAL STANDPOINT, WE COULD STORE THOUSANDS OF BILLIONS OF TONS WITH THIS METHOD WORLDWIDE.

LIKE, ALL THE EMISSIONS WE COULD POTENTIALLY IMAGINE THAT COULD HAPPEN OVER THE NEXT HUNDRED YEARS COULD BE STORED WITH SUCH A WAY.

NARRATOR: IN ICELAND, A SECOND INSTALLATION HAS SUCCESSFULLY STARTED STORING CAPTURED CARBON DIOXIDE ON A SMALL SCALE DEEP IN THE EARTH'S CRUST BELOW.

SEVERAL DIRECT-AIR-CAPTURE PLANTS ARE NOW BEING DEVELOPED AND BUILT IN EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA.

BUT THERE'S A CATCH.

GRETA: HOW MUCH CO2 DO YOU ACTUALLY CAPTURE HERE?

ROUGHLY 500 TONS OF CO2 PER YEAR.

SO COMPARED TO WHAT WE NEED TO DO GLOBALLY, THAT'S NOTHING.

I MEAN, SCIENCE TELLS US BY MID OF THE CENTURY, WE NEED TO REMOVE MAYBE 10 BILLION TONS PER YEAR.

SO OUR TARGET IS TO SCALE UP OUR DIRECT AIR CAPTURE PLANTS TO THE SCALE OF GIGATON OR BILLION TONS OF CO2 REMOVAL.

SO WE NEED TO SCALE UP, AGAIN, BY OVER ONE MILLION TIMES.

GRETA: IF YOU JUST MAGICALLY GOT ALL THE FUNDING YOU WANTED... WURZBACHER: YEAH?

HOW FAST COULD YOU SCALE THIS UP, LIKE, 2025, 2030 OR...?

THAT'S A TOUGH QUESTION.

IT IS.

IF WE HAD ALL THE RESOURCES POSSIBLE, MAYBE 10 YEARS, BUT IT'S A BOLD STATEMENT.

SO WE STARTED WITH MILLIGRAMS, SO NOW WE ARE AT TONS.

AND WE NEED TO GO TO GIGATONS, SO WE ARE HALFWAY, KIND OF, RIGHT?

YEAH, IT'S STILL A LONG WAY.

NARRATOR: TO LIMIT GLOBAL WARMING TO 1.5 DEGREES CELSIUS WITH THIS TECHNOLOGY ALONE, TENS OF MILLIONS OF PLANTS OF THIS SIZE WOULD BE NEEDED WITHIN THE NEXT DECADE.

GRETA: THIS IS SEEN AS THE SOLUTION, THE SILVER BULLET.

AND TO ACTUALLY HAVE SEEN IT IS, OF COURSE, VERY COOL, SO TO SPEAK, BUT IT'S MUCH MORE SMALL-SCALE THAN I HAD IMAGINED.

IT'S JUST THE TIMEFRAME.

IF WE ARE TO STAY BELOW 1.5 DEGREES, THIS TECHNOLOGY CANNOT BE THE WHOLE SOLUTION.

WE NEED TO DO SO MUCH MORE IN ADDITION TO THIS.

HEPBURN: WE'RE VERY UNLIKELY TO GET TO 1.5 DEGREES WITHOUT SOMETHING LIKE CARBON DIOXIDE REMOVAL, BUT DIRECT AIR CAPTURE IS NOT THE ONLY TECHNOLOGY THAT COULD HELP TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE.

BERNERS-LEE: THERE'S A THING CALLED ENHANCED ROCK WEATHERING WHERE WE GRIND UP BASALT ROCK AND SPRINKLE IT ON OUR FIELDS.

AND OVER TIME, IT ABSORBS SOME CARBON DIOXIDE FROM THE ATMOSPHERE, AS WELL AS POTENTIALLY ENHANCING THE FERTILITY OF THE FIELD.

LE QUÉRÉ: AND THERE HAVE BEEN PROPOSALS FOR GEOENGINEERING THE PLANET, LIKE PUTTING SULFUR IN THE UPPER ATMOSPHERE SO THAT IT REFLECTS THE SUN RAYS AND YOU COOL YOUR PLANET.

BUT YOU CAN DO HARM BY TRYING TO FIX A PROBLEM, YOU CREATE OTHER PROBLEMS.

THAT'S A LOT MORE RISKY THAN REDUCING OUR EMISSIONS.

WILLIS: WE NEED TO REDUCE EMISSIONS.

AND WE NEED A SUITE OF DIFFERENT TECHNOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS, PLUS NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS, AND BRING THOSE TOGETHER, AND THEN WE'LL START TO ACTUALLY REALLY SORT THIS PROBLEM OUT.

NARRATOR: GRETA IS TRAVELING TO NORTHERN DENMARK, A CENTER FOR THE COUNTRY'S BEEF AND DAIRY INDUSTRY.

GRETA: RIGHT NOW, HALF OF DENMARK'S SURFACE IS USED FOR GROWING FOOD FOR LIVESTOCK.

NARRATOR: LIVESTOCK IS RESPONSIBLE FOR AROUND 12% OF ALL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS...

MOST COMING FROM THE 1.6 BILLION CATTLE BEING RAISED ACROSS THE PLANET.

AT AARHUS UNIVERSITY'S RESEARCH FARM, PROFESSOR METTE OLAF NIELSEN IS STUDYING HOW TO REDUCE THE 145 GALLONS OF METHANE GAS PRODUCED ON AVERAGE EVERY DAY BY EACH OF THE 240 COWS HERE.

[COWS LOWING] NIELSEN: THIS IS THE COW BARN, WHERE WE ARE TESTING HOW DIFFERENT SORTS OF FEED ADDITIVES CAN BE USED TO REDUCE METHANE EMISSION FROM THE CATTLE.

ALL THE BLUE BOXES THAT YOU SEE HERE.

GRETA: YEAH?

THEY ARE SPECIAL FEEDING SYSTEMS THAT WE HAVE.

EACH COW HAS A COLLAR AROUND HER NECK, AND THERE IS A SENSOR THAT TELLS THE FEEDING MACHINE HERE WHENEVER SHE COMES, AND THEN WE CAN GIVE THEM THESE ADDITIVES, AND WE CAN DOCUMENT QUANTITATIVELY HOW MUCH IS THE METHANE EMISSION BEING REDUCED.

NARRATOR: THE METHANE IS PRODUCED BY MICROBES IN THE COWS' STOMACHS.

THESE MICROSCOPIC ORGANISMS ADD AROUND 37 BILLION GALLONS OF METHANE A YEAR TO THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE, ALTHOUGH THIS VARIES, DEPENDING ON HOW MUCH INDIVIDUAL COWS EAT AND WHAT THEY FEED ON.

GRETA: DOING THIS RESEARCH, HAVE YOU DISCOVERED ANYTHING SO FAR?

YEAH, THAT THERE IS A PARTICULAR ADDITIVE.

ACROSS A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT TRIALS IN DAIRY COWS, WE HAVE OBSERVED THAT IT COULD REDUCE METHANE BY UP TO 40% OVERNIGHT.

THAT'S A VERY DRAMATIC REDUCTION.

NARRATOR: THE RESEARCH SHOWS THAT WHEN THE COWS EAT THE ADDITIVE-ENRICHED FEED, THEIR METHANE EMISSIONS ARE QUICKLY REDUCED.

BUT LIKE ALL RESEARCH, THERE'S WORK TO BE DONE BEFORE IT CAN MOVE OUT OF THE LAB.

GRETA: HOW FAST WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT THIS?

NIELSEN: THAT DEPENDS ON E.U.

LEGISLATION.

SO IT TAKES TIME.

BUT THE POINT IS A LOT OF COMPANIES WITH BIG RESEARCH BUDGETS--ARE BEGINNING TO GO INTO THIS, AND THAT IS WHEN SCIENCE CAN REALLY BEGIN TO MOVE.

YEAH.

SO I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO REDUCE THE CARBON FOOTPRINT OF MILK, PARTICULARLY, TO A VERY, VERY LOW LEVEL WITHIN THE NEXT 30-50 YEARS.

GRETA: I'M A BIT SURPRISED IN A WAY-- BUT, THAT IS, IF IT GETS IMPLEMENTED AND, OF COURSE, IF IT ACTUALLY WORKS AS GOOD IN REALITY AS IT DOES IN THE LAB.

TECHNOLOGY IS DEFINITELY HELPING US, BUT WE NEED TO BE REALISTS.

TECHNOLOGY ALONE WILL NOT SAVE US.

WE CAN'T WAIT FOR DECADES FOR THE TECHNOLOGIES TO BECOME AVAILABLE THAT WILL ALONE REDUCE OUR EMISSIONS.

WE ARE FIGHTING TO CONTINUE TO LIVE LIKE WE ARE TODAY, TO AVOID MAKING ANY CHANGES, BUT WE ARE SIMPLY GOING TO HAVE TO CHANGE OUR BEHAVIOR.

♪ WE CANNOT FIGHT AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE WITHOUT INDIVIDUAL CHANGE.

THE FACT THAT IT'S THE WAY WE BEHAVE, THE WAY WE CONSUME, THAT IS THE PROBLEM.

BUT IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO LIVE 100% SUSTAINABLE TODAY...

WHICH IS SOMETHING THAT IS FUNDAMENTALLY WRONG, YOU KNOW, OF COURSE.

LIKE, DO YOU CHOOSE THESE ONES?

THESE ARE FROM TANZANIA.

OR THESE ONES.

WHERE DO THESE COME FROM?

THESE ARE FROM KENYA.

IT'S SO HARD TO FIGURE OUT WHAT TO CHOOSE, WHAT'S THE BEST OPTION.

"35% LOWER CO2 IMPACT."

MAN: VERY CLOSE TO 1/4 OF ALL OF OUR GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS ARE RELATED TO FOOD PRODUCTION.

WILLIS: THERE'S A HUGE DIFFERENCE IN THE EMISSIONS ASSOCIATED WITH PRODUCING DIFFERENT FOOD TYPES.

IT TAKES 60 KILOGRAMS OF CO2 TO PRODUCE 1 KILOGRAM OF BEEF.

IT'S 0.4 KILOGRAMS OF CO2 TO PRODUCE 1 KILOGRAM OF TURNIPS AND CARROTS.

BERNERS-LEE: IN TERMS OF THE CLIMATE, IT'S INHERENTLY MUCH BETTER TO GROW PLANTS AND FEED THEM DIRECTLY TO HUMANS THAN IT IS TO GROW PLANTS AND FEED THEM TO ANIMALS AND THEN TAKE THE FOOD FROM THE ANIMAL.

WILLIS: BUT IT'S NOT AS SIMPLE AS BEEF VERSUS PLANTS.

IT'S ALSO ABOUT HOW YOU'RE FEEDING THAT BEEF.

ONE OF THE PROBLEMS IS THAT ACROSS THE WORLD, SOME MEAT IS BEING FED ON SOY, WHICH IS BEING PRODUCED IN SOUTH AMERICA AND, IN THE PROCESS, DESTROYING THE FORESTS THAT SHOULD BE DOING THEIR JOB OF DRAWING DOWN ATMOSPHERIC CARBON DIOXIDE.

BERNERS-LEE: HOW WE TRANSPORT OUR FOOD ALSO HAS AN IMPACT ON GLOBAL CARBON EMISSIONS.

PUTTING FRUIT AND VEG ON AN AIRPLANE HAS SOMETHING LIKE 100 TIMES THE CARBON FOOTPRINT OF PUTTING IT ON A BOAT.

SO WE CAN HAVE APPLES FROM NEW ZEALAND, AND THEY'RE STILL A RELATIVELY LOW-CARBON FOOD.

HOWEVER, THE MINUTE WE BUY SOMETHING LIKE ASPARAGUS FROM PERU, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN ON AN AIRPLANE, AND THAT'S VERY HIGH CARBON.

GRETA: SCIENCE DOESN'T TELL ANYONE EXACTLY WHAT TO DO.

IT ONLY COLLECTS AND PRESENTS INFORMATION, AND IT IS THEN UP TO US TO CONNECT THE DOTS AND DECIDE WHAT TO DO.

HERE'S A RAINCOAT.

IT'S BEEN USED A LOT IN PICTURES AND SO ON.

IT'S ACTUALLY MY DAD'S RAINCOAT.

SVANTE: WE WERE JUST AN ORDINARY FAMILY.

WE HAD A GREAT LIFE.

WE WERE HIGH-CONSUMING, AS YOU ARE.

YOU WEAR NICE CLOTHES.

YOU BUY A LOT OF STUFF.

I DIDN'T HAVE A CLUE ABOUT THE CLIMATE.

I DIDN'T GIVE A DAMN.

GRETA: THIS IS MY HAT.

IT USED TO HAVE THIS POM-POM, BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S NOT THERE ANYMORE.

I THINK IT WAS ROXY WHO ATE IT.

SVANTE: OF COURSE, GRETA CAME ALONG, AND SHE HAD HER CRUSADE, WHICH STARTED WITH OUR OWN FAMILY.

GRETA: YEAH, SO THIS IS WHERE I SLEEP.

I HAVE LOTS OF THINGS HERE.

THIS ONE I LIKE.

BUT, LIKE ALMOST ALL MY CLOTHES, IT'S GOT HOLES IN IT.

SO I NEED TO FIX THAT.

I WEAR THEM UNTIL I LITERALLY CAN'T ANYMORE.

THESE ARE ACTUALLY NEWLY BOUGHT.

I THINK I GOT THEM FOR CHRISTMAS, AND I WAS DISAPPOINTED BECAUSE I HAD TOLD MY PARENTS, I DON'T WANT ANYTHING NEW.

OF COURSE, IT'S EASY FOR ME TO STOP BUYING NEW THINGS AND SO ON BECAUSE I DON'T CARE.

I UNDERSTAND THAT FOR MANY, THIS IS QUITE-- THIS CAN BE AN IMPORTANT PART OF THEIR IDENTITY IN THE WAY THEY EXPRESS THEMSELVES.

RAWORTH: THE GLOBAL FASHION INDUSTRY HAS A HUGE IMPACT ON THE CLIMATE, PRODUCING AROUND 5% OF ALL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.

THAT'S MORE THAN FLIGHTS AND SHIPPING COMBINED.

BARRETT: TODAY WE'RE BUYING ABOUT 60% MORE CLOTHES GLOBALLY THAN WE DID ABOUT 20 YEARS AGO.

IT'S PART OF OUR INSATIABLE APPETITE FOR MORE AND MORE STUFF.

RAWORTH: MANY HIGH-INCOME COUNTRIES ARE PROUD TO SAY THAT THEIR CARBON EMISSIONS AT HOME ARE FALLING, BUT IF WE TAKE ACCOUNT OF EVERYTHING THAT WE BUY, THE FOOD WE EAT, THE CLOTHES WE WEAR, OUR CARBON FOOTPRINTS AREN'T FALLING ON ANYTHING LIKE THE SCALE THAT IT SEEMS.

BARRETT: WHAT WE'VE REALLY DONE IS JUST OUTSOURCE THE PROBLEM ELSEWHERE.

THE CARBON FOOTPRINT OF MAKING CLOTHES IN CHINA IS 40% HIGHER PER ITEM THAN IT IS, FOR EXAMPLE, IN EUROPE OR TURKEY.

AND ONE OF THE REASONS FOR THIS IS THEY HAVE A LOT MORE COAL IN THEIR SUPPLY CHAIN PROVIDING ELECTRICITY, WHICH IS THEN USED TO MAKE THE GARMENT.

SO MY RESEARCH TEAM SHOWED THAT WHILE THE EMISSIONS IN THE U.K. HAVE DROPPED BY ABOUT 42% FROM 1990, THEY'VE ONLY GONE DOWN BY 15% IF WE ACTUALLY TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ALL THAT CONSUMPTION.

♪ REPORTER: A NUMBER OF GLOBAL CORONAVIRUS CASES HAS SEEN A RECORD SINGLE-DAY INCREASE.

THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION SAYS IT'S THE FIRST TIME DURING THE PANDEMIC THE FIGURE HAS SURPASSED 250,000.

NARRATOR: THE PANDEMIC HAS KNOCKED THE CLIMATE DEBATE OUT OF THE HEADLINES.

SO TO SEEK ADVICE ON HOW TO KEEP IT UPPERMOST IN PEOPLE'S MINDS, GRETA IS TRAVELING TO THE NORWEGIAN BORDER.

GRETA: I AM GOING TO INTERVIEW PER ESPEN STOKNES, THE NORWEGIAN PSYCHOLOGIST.

HE'S BEEN DOING RESEARCH ON HOW TO USE PSYCHOLOGY TO COMMUNICATE THE CLIMATE CRISIS AND HOW CAN WE MAKE PEOPLE CARE ABOUT THIS, BASICALLY.

DURING CORONA TIMES, I'M NOT ALLOWED TO ENTER NORWAY TO STEP ACROSS THE BORDER.

SO WE'RE GOING TO DO THE INTERVIEW ON THE BORDER ITSELF.

[GRETA CHUCKLES] HI.

WONDERFUL TO MEET YOU, GRETA.

HI.

NICE TO MEET YOU.

OH, YEAH, THAT'S THE WAY WE DO IT.

YEAH.

SO, YEAH, SHOULD WE WALK INSIDE?

KEEP IT ON THE BORDER.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: MY ONLY GOAL IS TO RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT THE CLIMATE CRISIS, AND THE CLIMATE CRISIS HAS, OF COURSE, NOT DISAPPEARED DURING THIS TIME.

GRETA: THIS IS SPECIAL.

IT IS.

NEITHER NORWAY, NOR SWEDEN.

IT'S LIKE A LIMBO ZONE.

I WONDER WHAT LAWS APPLY HERE.

[LAUGHING] YEAH.

YOU HAVE DONE RESEARCH ON HOW PEOPLE BASICALLY REACT TO THE CLIMATE CRISIS.

SO WHY AREN'T PEOPLE MORE WORRIED ABOUT THE CLIMATE CRISIS THAN THEY ARE?

FIRST PEOPLE EXPERIENCE THE CLIMATE AS SOMETHING VERY FAR AWAY FROM THEM.

IN THE YEAR 2100, 2050.

IT'S NOT HERE AND NOW.

AND MOST PEOPLE ARE WORRIED ABOUT WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO NEXT WEEK, NOT WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN 3 DECADES DOWN THE LINE.

ALSO, THERE'S A BARRIER IN THE BRAIN THAT I CALL THE DOOM BARRIER.

AND THAT IS WHEN THE CLIMATE SCIENTISTS START TO SPEAK ABOUT, "IF WE DON'T STOP EMISSIONS, "THEN WE'LL BURN THE EARTH, "WE WILL, YOU KNOW, DESTROY OUR CIVILIZATION.

IT'S AN APOCALYPSE."

IF WE SPEAK A LOT ABOUT THESE THINGS, MOST PEOPLE FEEL THIS AS JUST, I DON'T KNOW-- WHAT IS--THEY DON'T, IT DOESN'T CONNECT.

SO RATHER THAN HAVING FOCUS ON THIS POTENTIAL DESTRUCTION OF CIVILIZATION AS WE KNOW IT, MAYBE WE NEED A NEW STORY.

WE NEED TO CORRECT THE BALANCE, 75% ON THE SOLUTIONS AND 25% ON THE THREATS.

AND YET I GET SHOCKED EVERY SINGLE DAY WHEN I TALK TO PEOPLE AND THEY KNOW THAT THE CLIMATE IS CHANGING AND THEY KNOW IT'S BAD, BUT THEY DON'T KNOW THE MAGNITUDE.

I'VE SPOKEN TO WORLD LEADERS, HEADS OF STATE...

YES.

WHO DON'T EVEN KNOW THESE THINGS.

AND YOU SAY WE NEED TO TELL A NEW STORY.

BUT HAVE PEOPLE REALLY BEEN REACHED BY THE OLD ONE?

YOU KNOW, I DON'T THINK WE REALLY DISAGREE.

I WANT PEOPLE TO FEEL THE CRISIS, TOO.

THE CHALLENGE IS THAT TELLING THE TRUTH IS NOT ENOUGH.

CAN YOU HAMMER PEOPLE WITH FACTS UNTIL THEY CHANGE?

NO, YOU CANNOT.

SO HOW DO WE DO THAT?

HOW DO WE COMMUNICATE THE CLIMATE CRISIS IN A WAY WHICH PEOPLE CAN RELATE TO?

MAYBE WE COULD LOOK AT IT THIS WAY.

FIRST TIMES WHEN I HEARD YOU, IT REALLY TOUCHED ME.

I HAD TEARS IN MY EYES BECAUSE FINALLY, SOMEBODY'S TELLING THE TRUTH IN A WAY THAT CUTS ALL THE CRAP.

SO I THINK THAT FIGHTING FOR FUTURE APPROACH-- AND I KNOW YOU'VE NOT BEEN ALONE.

THERE'S BEEN HUNDREDS OF OTHER-- THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN CO-ORGANIZING THIS.

BUT GETTING THAT GOING IS ACTUALLY VERY IMPORTANT BECAUSE HUMANS ARE SOCIAL ANIMALS.

WE ARE EVOLVED TO LOOK AT, WHAT ARE OTHER PEOPLE DOING?

AND IF IT BECOMES NORMAL TO TAKE ACTION, THEN YOU HAVE SUCCEEDED IN CHANGING SOCIAL NORMS.

AND WE'VE SEEN IN THIS COVID CRISIS HOW NOT JUST INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIORS BUT ALSO POLITICS HAVE CHANGED DRAMATICALLY.

AND THIS CRISIS HAS NOW KIND OF GIVEN THE ENERGY TO CHANGE.

THAT'S A HUGE OPPORTUNITY.

YEAH.

THE CHALLENGE IS IN EXPLAINING THE SITUATION, HOW IT IS, BEING REALISTIC, AND ALSO COMMUNICATE A POSITIVE STORY AND HOPE BUT IN A WAY THAT IT DOESN'T MAKE PEOPLE THINK LIKE, "OH, THINGS ARE BEING TAKEN CARE OF, SO I CAN JUST LEAVE IT."

SO THERE'S A VERY FINE BALANCE IN THAT.

THERE IS.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS, OF COURSE, A SCIENTIFIC CRISIS, BUT IT IS ALSO A COMMUNICATION CRISIS.

WE HAVE LOST DECADES BECAUSE WE HAVE JUST IGNORED IT.

SO, YES, OF COURSE, WE NEED TO BE HOPEFUL AND WE NEED TO INSPIRE OTHERS TO TAKE ACTION.

BUT I THINK WE CAN'T JUST EXPECT PEOPLE TO CHANGE JUST FROM PEP-TALKING THEM.

WE NEED TO SHOW THE TRUTH, NOT EXAGGERATE, NOT TELL IT IN A PESSIMISTIC WAY BUT IN A REALISTIC WAY.

AND THE CORONA PANDEMIC SHOWED THAT IF WE DO FACE AN EMERGENCY, EVERYTHING CAN CHANGE OVERNIGHT.

NOT JUST POLICIES BUT ALSO PEOPLE'S MIND-SETS CAN CHANGE OVERNIGHT.

♪ NEWSCASTER: EUROPEAN UNION LEADERS HAVE REACHED A DEAL ON 750 BILLION EURO IN GRANTS AND LOANS TO COUNTER THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC.

GRETA: I HAVE BEEN VERY QUIET FOR A VERY LONG TIME, BUT IT FEELS LIKE RIGHT NOW, WE ARE AT A VERY CRITICAL POINT.

IF WE DON'T SET THE AGENDA QUITE SOON, THEN SOMEONE ELSE IS GOING TO DO THAT FOR US.

SO WE ARE PLANNING ON DOING SOMETHING, SOMETHING BIG.

♪ NEWSCASTER: IT'S BEEN TWO YEARS SINCE GRETA THUNBERG WENT ON STRIKE FROM SCHOOL FOR THE FIRST TIME.

THE GLOBAL CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC HAS KEPT PROTESTORS AT HOME.

NARRATOR: TO SEIZE WHAT COULD BE A CRUCIAL MOMENT IN HER MISSION TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE, GRETA HAS COME TO GERMANY TO CONFRONT ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST POWERFUL POLITICIANS.

NEWSCASTER: A 90-MINUTE MEETING WITH GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL PROVIDES THE CHANCE TO REFOCUS ATTENTION ON THE CLIMATE CHANGE CRISIS.

NARRATOR: ALONG WITH 3 OTHER LEADING YOUNG ACTIVISTS, GRETA IS DEMANDING THAT IN THE WAKE OF THE PANDEMIC, ANGELA MERKEL AND THE OTHER E.U.

LEADERS WITHDRAW ALL INVESTMENT IN FOSSIL FUEL INDUSTRIES.

GRETA: WE CAN TALK HOW MUCH WE WANT ABOUT GREEN DEALS OR GREEN RECOVERY PLANS OR GREEN INVESTMENT PLANS, BUT IF THE WORLD WERE TO GO THROUGH WITH ALL THE PLANNED PRODUCTION OF FOSSIL FUELS BY THE YEAR 2030, THAT WOULD ACCOUNT FOR 120% MORE THAN WHAT WOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH A 1.5-DEGREE TARGET.

[DEMONSTRATORS SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE] GRETA: KEEP AWARE OF YOUR DISTANCE, EVERYONE.

I'M JUST TRYING TO GIVE DISTANCE.

THANK YOU, EVERYONE.

BYE.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: EVEN IF THE WORLD LEADERS WANT TO TEAR UP THAT AMOUNT OF FOSSIL FUEL CONTRACTS AND DEALS AND ABANDON THAT, THAT'S NOT POSSIBLE WITHIN TODAY'S SYSTEMS.

GRETA: AND ANGELA MERKEL IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PEOPLE IN THE WORLD.

AND NOW SHE HAS THIS HISTORICAL OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY USE THIS MOMENT BECAUSE WE NEED A SYSTEM CHANGE.

HELLO.

GRETA: HELLO.

NICE TO MEET YOU.

GOOD TO HAVE YOU HERE.

ACTIVIST: YES, THANK YOU FOR HAVING US.

AND WELCOME.

TAKE YOUR SEATS.

NARRATOR: THE CHANCELLOR'S OFFICE HAS REQUESTED THAT THEIR CONVERSATION IS NOT RECORDED.

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: SOMETIMES YOU WISH THAT YOU COULD BRING A HIDDEN CAMERA ONTO THESE MEETINGS.

THEY HAVE A LONG MONOLOGUE ABOUT EVERYTHING THEY DO.

AND WE SAY, "YEAH, THAT'S GREAT, "BUT IT'S NOT IN LINE WITH THE PARIS AGREEMENT THAT YOU HAVE SIGNED."

AND THEN THEY SAY, "YEAH, WE KNOW YOU THINK THAT THIS IS NOT ENOUGH, BUT AT LEAST IT'S SOMETHING."

AND THEN WE SAY, "NO, SCIENTIFICALLY, IS THIS IN LINE WITH WHAT YOU HAVE PROMISED TO DO?"

AND THE FACT IS NO.

ACTIVIST: WHAT DO WE WANT?

ALL: CLIMATE JUSTICE!

ACTIVIST: WHEN DO WE WANT IT?

ALL: NOW!

ACTIVIST: WHAT DO WE WANT?

ALL: CLIMATE JUSTICE!

ACTIVIST: WHEN DO WE WANT IT?

ALL: NOW!

GRETA, VOICE-OVER: SHE WAS, UH, I DON'T KNOW IF I WANT TO SAY THIS-- SHE WAS A BIT DRIER THAN I THOUGHT TALKING ABOUT THE PROGRESS THEY HAVE MADE.

SHE SAID IT MIGHT NOT BE IN LINE WITH PARIS, BUT AT LEAST IT'S A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

AND THAT'S WHAT THEY ALWAYS SAY.

NARRATOR: SOME POLITICIANS DO CLAIM TO BE CHANGING THE SYSTEM.

GRETA HAS COME TO THE DANISH CAPITAL, COPENHAGEN, WHERE THE MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT PLANS TO MAKE THE CITY CARBON NEUTRAL BY 2025, THE MOST AMBITIOUS TARGET OF ANY URBAN AREA IN THE WORLD.

AT THE HEART OF THIS STRATEGY LIES THE AMAGER BAKKE POWER PLANT.

GRETA'S COME HERE TO MEET THE LOCAL POLITICIAN IN CHARGE OF THE CITY'S ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY, NINA HEDEAGER OLSEN.

[INDISTINCT CONVERSATION] NARRATOR: OPENED IN 2017, THE POWER PLANT IS FUELED BY THE CITY'S MUNICIPAL WASTE.

AND IN A CONCEPT KNOWN AS HEDONISTIC SUSTAINABILITY, AN URBAN SKI SLOPE HAS BEEN BUILT ON TOP.

GRETA: IT'S OVER 30 DEGREES OUTSIDE, AND PEOPLE ARE SKIING.

YES!

PRETTY CRAZY.

YEAH.

[OVERLAPPING CONVERSATIONS] NARRATOR: BUT COPENHAGEN'S EMISSIONS ACCOUNTING DOES NOT INCLUDE ALL OF THE CITY'S SOURCES OF CARBON DIOXIDE...

SUCH AS ITS AIRPORT.

GRETA: YOU ALWAYS HEAR ABOUT COPENHAGEN CARBON NEUTRAL 2025... YEAH.

AND SO ON.

IF THESE TARGETS ARE SO INCOMPLETE, DO THEY REALLY MEAN ANYTHING?

WHEN I STARTED IN THE MUNICIPALITY 6 YEARS AGO, I WAS ALSO REALLY, LIKE, CRITICAL IN SAYING, LIKE, "THIS IS CHEATING."

BUT I THINK RIGHT NOW, THE BEST THING I CAN DO AS A POLITICIAN IS TO GO AS FAR AS POSSIBLE TO MAKE COPENHAGEN GREENER.

I WOULD LOVE THAT WE COULD GO WAY FURTHER THAN WE CAN, BUT YOU HAVE TO MAKE COMPROMISES.

EVERYONE ALWAYS SAYS WE HAVE TO COMPROMISE.

NOW EVERYTHING IS ABOUT CREATING LOOPHOLES TO SAY THAT WE ARE IN LINE WITH THE PARIS AGREEMENT.

BUT CAN'T WE JUST FOR ONCE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT "THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE SIGNED UP FOR, THIS IS WHAT WE NEED TO DO..."?

ARE WE GOING TO DO IT?

I DON'T LOOK AT THIS PLAN LIKE THIS IS THE PERFECT PLAN OR WHEN WE REACH 2025, THEN WE HAVE FIXED THE WORLD OR FIXED COPENHAGEN AT ALL.

BUT MY PROBLEM IS TO MEET THE OTHER PARTIES TO FIND THE MONEY FOR THE CHANGES TOGETHER WITH YOU.

LIKE, YOU CAN'T DO IT ALONE BECAUSE YOU NEED THE VOTES.

GRETA: THE MAYOR WAS VERY NICE, AND I LIKED THAT SHE WAS HONEST.

SHE WANTED TO REDUCE THE EMISSIONS.

BUT, I MEAN, THIS IS A TEXTBOOK EXAMPLE OF CREATIVE ACCOUNTING, BUT YOU JUST CHOOSE WHAT EMISSIONS YOU WANT TO INCLUDE IN YOUR STATISTICS.

WE HAVE SIGNED UP FOR PARIS, AND COPENHAGEN IS ALWAYS REFERRED TO IN THE CLIMATE DEBATE AS WHAT WE SHOULD BE LOOKING TO.

BUT THIS IS THE VERY, VERY, VERY MINIMUM OF WHAT YOU NEED TO DO.

GRETA: OBVIOUSLY, WE CAN'T CONTINUE DOWN THE SAME ROAD.

THAT'S CLEARLY WHAT THE SIGN SAYS.

IF WE ARE TO BE ABLE TO LIVE AND THRIVE, WE CAN'T KEEP DOING WHAT WE DO NOW.

AND THOSE CHANGES, NECESSARILY, ARE NOT GOING TO BE EASY.

IF IT WOULD BE EASY, THEN IT WOULDN'T BE A CRISIS.

♪ NARRATOR: GRETA'S YEAR-LONG SABBATICAL IS FINALLY OVER, AND SHE'S NOW BACK AT SCHOOL.

GRETA: STUDYING IS WHAT I LIKE MOST, TO HAVE, LIKE, NORMAL ROUTINES, BECAUSE THE LAST YEAR HAS BEEN VERY CHAOTIC.

NARRATOR: 12 MONTHS AGO, GRETA SET OUT TO SEE FIRSTHAND THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE... GRETA: I KNEW THINGS WERE BAD, BUT TO REALLY BE HERE, IT MAKES YOU REALIZE IT'S FOR REAL.

NARRATOR: AND LEARNED WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO TACKLE IT.

SO WE NEED TO SCALE UP BY OVER ONE MILLION TIMES.

NARRATOR: AND IN THE GLARE OF THE WORLD'S SPOTLIGHT, SHE'S COME OF AGE... WOMAN: GRETA THUNBERG!

NARRATOR: AS OUR WORLD HAS BEEN TURNED UPSIDE-DOWN BY COVID-19.

GRETA: IF THERE'S ONE THING THE PANDEMIC HAS SHOWN US, IT IS THAT THE CLIMATE CRISIS HAS NEVER ONCE BEEN TREATED AS AN EMERGENCY.

HOPE IS TELLING IT LIKE IT IS.

AND FOR ME, HOPE IS NOT FEELING THAT EVERYTHING WILL BE ALL RIGHT.

FOR ME, HOPE IS WHAT GETS YOU TO FEEL A MEANING AND TO GET UP AND FIGHT FOR WHAT YOU BELIEVE IS RIGHT.

THAT IS HOPE FOR ME.

NARRATOR: DESPITE WARNINGS FROM SCIENTISTS AROUND THE WORLD, GLOBAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS CONTINUE TO RISE.

WORLD LEADERS ARE RESPONDING WITH MORE PLEDGES.

[MAN SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE] MAN, TRANSLATED: WE AIM TO ACHIEVE CARBON NEUTRALITY BEFORE 2060.

NEWSCASTER: JOE BIDEN PLANS TO SPEND $2 TRILLION OVER 4 YEARS ON CLEAN ENERGY, AND REJOINING THE PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT IS AT THE TOP OF HIS LIST.

RIGHT NOW WE'RE CLEARLY NOT ON TRACK TO MEET THE GOALS OF THE PARIS AGREEMENT.

LE QUÉRÉ: THE PROBLEM IS SPEED.

THE WAY THINGS ARE GOING, WE COULD SEE A PLANETARY WARMING AROUND 3 DEGREES CELSIUS AT THE END OF THE CENTURY.

MANN: WE NEED TO BRING CARBON EMISSIONS DOWN DRAMATICALLY.

EDWARDS: WHAT WE'VE SEEN WITH THE PANDEMIC IS JUST WHAT WE CAN ACHIEVE WHEN WE THROW FINANCIAL SUPPORT BEHIND SCIENTISTS AND TECHNOLOGY TO SOLVE A SPECIFIC PROBLEM.

LE QUÉRÉ: I SEE LOTS OF CHANGE HAPPENING, AND THAT GIVES ME OPTIMISM.

THERE IS REALLY NO OBSTACLE EXCEPT WILL.

JOHNSON: WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?

SCIENCE IS NOT THE THING THAT'S HOLDING US BACK.

ANDERSON: SO WE HAVE A REALLY GOOD UNDERSTANDING WHAT WE NEED TO DO, BUT IT'S ONLY WHEN A YOUNG SWEDISH SCHOOLGIRL STEPS UP AND SAYS, YOU KNOW, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

ONLY THEN DO WE STAND UP AND SAY, "OH, YES.

THAT'S RIGHT."

GRETA: FOR REASONS I DON'T UNDERSTAND, PEOPLE LISTEN WHEN I TALK.

YOU ARE LISTENING TO ME RIGHT NOW.

BUT I DON'T WANT THAT.

I DON'T WANT YOU TO LISTEN TO ME.

I WANT YOU TO LISTEN TO THE SCIENCE BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE.

♪ ♪ THE LAST YEAR HAS BEEN, HAS BEEN VERY VERY CHAOTIC.

I'VE BEEN GOING HALFWAY AROUND THE WORLD THE WRONG WAY.

WE NO LONGER HAVE TIME TO LEAVE OUT THE SCIENCE.

SO IT FALLS ON US TO BE THE ADULTS IN THE ROOM.

THEY PROBABLY SEE ME AS SOME KIND OF ANGRY TEENAGER, BUT UM, I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO, TO LISTEN TO, TO THESE PEOPLE AND SEE WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY.

I CAN'T BE RUDE, BUT ON THE OTHER HAND I CAN'T BE TOO NICE.

WORLD LEADERS ARE STILL TRYING TO RUN AWAY FROM THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES.

WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY CANNOT DO THAT.

[CHEERS]