ABSTRACT

Over the last two decades ‘climate emergency’ has grown from a little-known term to a mainstream public issue. In Australia, the term gained traction during the 2019-2020 ‘Black Summer’ bushfires. The (un)natural disaster prompted local governments, industries, peak bodies and academic collectives to ‘declare’ a climate emergency and call for immediate action on climate change. We note, however, that there has been no declaration from geographers in Australia. As a discipline whose members are embedded in research, teaching and advocacy about climate change – and the interlinked crises of biodiversity loss and environmental and social justice – we found this surprising. It is self-evident that climate change matters to geographers. So, is a declaration of a climate emergency from the discipline necessary? In writing this piece we reflect on our experiences of the 2019–2020 summer and conversations with fellow geographers, to consider what a declaration of an emergency does, who it is for and what actions it might mobilise. In conclusion, we call on geographers in Australia to declare an emergency which foregrounds the interlinked crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and social (in)justice. The detail of what this declaration says and means in practice is open for discussion. We ask many questions throughout this paper as a way to invite you – our fellow geographers – to join us in this conversation.

抽象的

在过去的二十年中，“气候紧急情况”已从鲜为人知的术语发展成为主流的公共问题。在澳大利亚，该术语在2019-2020年的``黑色夏天''丛林大火中受到关注。（非）自然灾害促使地方政府，企业，高峰团体和学术团体“宣布”气候紧急情况，并呼吁对气候变化立即采取行动。但是，我们注意到，澳大利亚没有地理学家的声明。作为一门学科，其成员扎根于气候变化的研究，教学和倡导以及生物多样性丧失与环境和社会正义之间相互联系的危机中，我们发现这令人惊讶。不言而喻，气候变化对地理学家至关重要。所以，有必要从该学科中宣布气候紧急情况吗？在撰写本文时，我们会反思我们在2019-2020年夏季的经历以及与其他地理学家的对话，以考虑紧急情况声明的用途，目的是为了什么以及它可能会采取什么行动。最后，我们呼吁澳大利亚的地理学家宣布一项紧急情况，以应对气候变化，生物多样性丧失和社会（司法）公正性相互关联的危机。该宣言所说的和在实践中意味着什么的细节尚待讨论。我们在本文中提出许多问题，以邀请您-我们的地理学家-加入我们的对话。这是针对谁的，它可能会采取什么行动。最后，我们呼吁澳大利亚的地理学家宣布一项紧急情况，以应对气候变化，生物多样性丧失和社会（司法）公正性相互关联的危机。该宣言所说的和在实践中意味着什么的细节尚待讨论。我们在本文中提出许多问题，以邀请您-我们的地理学家-加入我们的对话。这是针对谁的，它可能会采取什么行动。最后，我们呼吁澳大利亚的地理学家宣布紧急状态，以应对气候变化，生物多样性丧失和社会（司法）公义之间相互关联的危机。该宣言所说的和在实践中意味着什么的细节尚待讨论。我们在本文中提出许多问题，以邀请您-我们的地理学家-加入我们的对话。