Earth Day release underscores the program's mission to advance a sustainable, prosperous world
By Mark Dwortzan | MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change
First held in 1970, Earth Day is an annual observance on April 22 that promotes the need for environmental protection. Earth Day now comprises multiple events around the world under the coordination of EarthDay.org. The official theme for this year's Earth Day is Invest In Our Planet, To that end, the Earth Day 2022 website states:
"We need to act (boldly), innovate (broadly), and implement (equitably). It’s going to take all of us. All in. Businesses, governments, and citizens — everyone accounted for, and everyone accountable. A partnership for the planet. And while there is still time to solve the climate crisis, time to choose BOTH a prosperous and sustainable future, and time to restore nature and build a healthy planet for our children and their children, time is short."
This clarion call aligns with the mission of the MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change, which is to advance a sustainable, prosperous world. The Joint Program's global and regional change projections provide a scientific foundation for strategic investment, policymaking and other decisions that promote sustainable development.
To showcase how it is pursuing this mission, the MIT Joint Program is releasing four videos in conjunction with Earth Day 2022:
- Program Overview: Short version (3.5-minutes). Long version (5.5-minutes). For more information, see the MIT Joint Program homepage (short version) and Our Purpose webpage (long version).
- Greenhouse Gamble Wheels (1 minute). The roulette-style spinning wheels show the estimated probability of potential change in global average surface temperature at the end of the century (2091-2100) compared to pre-industrial levels (1861-1880). Each wheel represents a different set of greenhouse gas policies, and the relative area that each colored slice occupies within the wheel shows the likelihood of temperature change in that range. For more information, see the Greenhouse Gamble webpage.
- Multi-Sector Dynamics Modeling Tool (1 minute). This open-science visualization platform combines, overlays and diagnoses landscapes of socioeconomic, health and environmental risk and injustice. For more information, see the Multi-Sector Dynamics webpage.
To learn more, visit the MIT Joint Program website.
All videos were created by MIT Video Productions under the direction of Joe McMaster.
