logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2020
8m 40s

TED Climate: The case for stubborn optim...

TED
About this episode

"This decade is a moment of choice unlike any we have ever lived," says Christiana Figueres, the architect of the historic 2015 Paris Agreement. The daughter of Costa Rica's beloved President José Figueres Ferrer, she shares how her father's unwillingness to lose the country he loved taught her how stubborn optimism can catalyze action and change. With an unshakeable determination to fight for the generations that will come after us, Figueres describes what stubborn optimism is (and isn't) -- and urges everyone to envision and work for the future they want for humanity.

For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/speed-and-scale-transcript


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Nov 2025
How a Louisiana community came together to take down a petrochemical plant
In the heart of Louisiana, between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, more than 150 petrochemical plants spew huge amounts of carbon into our atmosphere—and into the communities they occupy. In this episode, Ryan and Anjali talk to a community organizer whose own sickness inspired her ... Show More
34m 25s
Nov 2025
How Copenhagen’s “food schools” are promoting sustainable eating habits
Food production makes up about 12% of our global emissions—that comes not only from the kinds of food we eat (like beef, which is one of the highest-emission foods you can eat), but how we grow and make it. The city of Copenhagen set an ambitious goal to reduce emissions from all ... Show More
27m 11s
Nov 2025
How you can fly more sustainably (today!)
The aviation industry is responsible for 3.5% of the world’s carbon emissions. That may seem like a small number globally, but this is a big problem in the developed world—and a stubborn one to solve. In this episode, Ryan and Anjali take a look at how Hawaii—a state whose aviati ... Show More
33m 21s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2020
The case for stubborn optimism on climate | Christiana Figueres
"This decade is a moment of choice unlike any we have ever lived," says Christiana Figueres, the architect of the historic 2015 Paris Agreement. The daughter of Costa Rica's beloved President José Figueres Ferrer, she shares how her father's unwillingness to lose the country he l ... Show More
8m 40s
Nov 2023
Christiana Figueres
Can we alter the course of climate change? One woman who can answer with authority is the internationally recognised leader on global climate change, Christiana Figueres. An absolutely remarkable woman, Ms Figueres was formerly the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framew ... Show More
40m 42s
Dec 2019
Christiana Figueres on how we can solve the climate crisis
In 2015, Christiana Figueres brokered the historic Paris Agreement to combat climate change. She gives an inside look at the negotiations that led to a commitment from 195 countries to work toward a low carbon future and discusses her current work on COUNTDOWN, an ambitious new i ... Show More
1h 6m
Nov 2023
Christiana Figueres — Ecological Hope, and Spiritual Evolution
The ecological crisis we are standing before is at once civilizational and personal — intimately close to each of us in the places we love and inhabit, and unfolding at a species level. And as much as anyone alive on the planet now, Christiana Figueres has felt the overwhelm of t ... Show More
1h 19m
Oct 2020
A special announcement from TED on climate
Today, we're re-sharing a conversation with Christiana Figueres, because we've got a special update for you from TED. On Saturday, October 10, we'll launch Countdown: an exciting new global initiative to champion and accelerate solutions to the climate crisis, turning ideas into ... Show More
1h 7m
Oct 2020
A special announcement from TED on climate
Today, we're re-sharing a conversation with Christiana Figueres, because we've got a special update for you from TED. On Saturday, October 10, we'll launch Countdown: an exciting new global initiative to champion and accelerate solutions to the climate crisis, turning ideas into ... Show More
1h 7m
Apr 2025
Your inner fire is your greatest strength | Xiye Bastida
Hope isn’t just a feeling, but a skill you can practice, explains climate activist Xiye Bastida. Taking cues from the resilience of nature, she shows why trusting Indigenous leaders who’ve protected the planet for generations can help turn despair about the climate into the momen ... Show More
12m 48s
Mar 2024
RSA Albert Medal Address
<p>Christiana Figueres receives the RSA Albert Medal, awarded annually to honour outstanding, regenerative and impactful innovation that is enabling people, places and the planet to flourish in harmony.  </p><p><strong>Christiana Figueres</strong> is an internationally recognised ... Show More
1h 1m