非洲，在我們的印象中似乎與乾涸的大地畫上了等號。事實上，非洲雖然不像台灣春夏秋冬四季分明，但也不是完全乾熱的氣候。
像馬拉威，因為位在高地，最冷的時候只有攝氏4度。每年11月開始，一直到隔年5月，整整半年都是雨量充沛的雨季。以往，馬拉威人等到第一道春雨降臨，就把泥土弄鬆、播種，兩個星期之後雨季到來，那時根也扎深了，農作物自然長得好。
然而，近年來全球「氣候變遷」打亂自然秩序，馬拉威人開始無法測雨季何時會來。太早播種，種子會枯掉；太慢播種，雨季一來就把種子全沖走，人們就沒有食物吃。
馬拉威的氣候離我們似乎很遙遠，我們能夠做什麼呢？其實，只要我們一起保護環境，讓地球氣候更穩定，就可以幫助馬拉威人們回到正常的農作生活哦！
We usually imagine Africa as a hot and dry place. Unlike Taiwan, Africa doesn’t have four distinct seasons. In fact, Africa does not only have a hot and dry climate.
Take Malawi for example. It’s located in the highlands. The coldest time is only 4 degrees Celsius. Each year from November to May, there is a lot of rain for six months during the wet season. In the past, Malawians waited for the first rain to come so they could loosen the soil and plant their crops. Two weeks later when the rainy season came, the roots were deep and the crops grew well.
However, in recent years the global climate change has upset the natural process. Malawians do not know when the rainy season will come. If they plant the seeds too early, the seeds will dry out. But if they plant the seeds too late, the rain will wash away the seeds and people will have no food to eat.
Malawi’s climate problems seem very far away from us, so what we can do? In fact, if we protect the environment to make the Earth’s climate more stable, we can help the farmers of Malawi return to a normal life.
精選單字與詞彙
- climate (n.) 氣候
- soil (n.) 泥土
- crop (n.) 作物
- root (n.) 根
- upset (v.) 擾亂；混亂
實用句型
In fact,…「事實上…；其實…」
A: I heard that there is a concert this weekend.
我聽說這個週末有演唱會
B: In fact, the concert is next weekend.
其實，演唱會是在下週末。
圖．文／畢嘉士基金會
英文翻譯／Sean O’Sullivan & TOEIC900工作團隊