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Nicola Sturgeon: How small countries can make a big impact on climate change | TED Countdown

When it comes to tackling climate change, the size of a country doesn’t matter — it’s their ambition that counts, says First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon. In a rousing talk, she shares examples of small nations — from Bhutan and Fiji to her own Scotland — whose leadership and climate action are galvanizing change…

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When it comes to tackling climate change, the size of a country doesn’t matter — it’s their ambition that counts, says First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon. In a rousing talk, she shares examples of small nations — from Bhutan and Fiji to her own Scotland — whose leadership and climate action are galvanizing change on the international stage. (Followed by a brief Q&A with TED’s global curator Bruno Giussani about the Cambo oil field project)

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87 Comments

87 Comments

  1. 이도

    February 2, 2022 at 6:45 pm

    한국어 자막좀..🇰🇷

  2. Kenny

    February 2, 2022 at 6:58 pm

    She can’t even touch on a subject without Scottish independence propaganda.

  3. R S

    February 2, 2022 at 7:06 pm

    If she was serious about what she’s saying, she’d shut down all of Scotland’s oil rigs ASAP, but that’s not going to happen.

  4. Elliot Richards

    February 2, 2022 at 7:16 pm

    Scotland would be even more of a shithole if it went its own way.

  5. Brother Taro

    February 2, 2022 at 7:29 pm

    Going vegan is the best thing individuals can do for climate change (not to mention animals!). Both the UN and researchers at Oxford University have supported this view.

    • muhammad ali

      February 2, 2022 at 8:35 pm

      Going without wars or exporting ammunitions to Asian African countries can also reduce not only carbon but also flourish your privileged animal as well as human rights

    • C M

      February 3, 2022 at 1:26 am

      🤣

  6. anthony schofield

    February 2, 2022 at 7:37 pm

    If Scotland is making so much electricity with wind etc why is the price of electricity going up in Scotland and the rest of the uk ??????

    • wojciech strzelecki

      February 2, 2022 at 11:46 pm

      Coz of woke out of touch with reality utopian mob & pandering to it populist governments..

  7. Ashley Holman

    February 2, 2022 at 7:50 pm

    Tiny socialist goblin witch.

  8. shan

    February 2, 2022 at 7:54 pm

    🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🖤

  9. Thomas Penning

    February 2, 2022 at 8:06 pm

    Agreed , it touched me. Great leadership. Great talk

  10. roodvik amranian

    February 2, 2022 at 8:06 pm

    ……. By the way, Scotland is not a country 😉

    • B sady

      February 2, 2022 at 11:22 pm

      Then what is it

  11. muhammad ali

    February 2, 2022 at 8:28 pm

    How America can make a big impact on climate?

    How Biden other than doing politics for the welfare of establishment,can do anything positive?

  12. MarkusChannel

    February 2, 2022 at 8:36 pm

    Wow! Such honour!

  13. BattlingPhoenix

    February 2, 2022 at 8:43 pm

    You will never get ur independence, I love being conservative

  14. oje oje oje

    February 2, 2022 at 8:51 pm

    Grüße aus der Betonstadt Wien

  15. Jim Bean

    February 2, 2022 at 9:10 pm

    This woman has ruined Scotland.

    • wojciech strzelecki

      February 2, 2022 at 11:42 pm

      Yep, miss Salmond quite a bit at this point all in all…

  16. lori lafferty

    February 2, 2022 at 9:36 pm

    Lol, they can quit overpopulating and moving to America, for starters.

  17. Willson James

    February 2, 2022 at 9:53 pm

    I’ve been searching for a good broker to trade with!!!
    Please 🙏 sir how can i find one??

    • Allen Galvin

      February 2, 2022 at 10:44 pm

      +1

    • Allen Galvin

      February 2, 2022 at 10:45 pm

      641

    • Allen Galvin

      February 2, 2022 at 10:45 pm

      800

    • Allen Galvin

      February 2, 2022 at 10:45 pm

      6723

    • Allen Galvin

      February 2, 2022 at 10:45 pm

      Here’s her info 👆

  18. David Tkocz

    February 2, 2022 at 9:56 pm

    Great speech. Well received by a highly knowledgeable and motivated audience. Well done Nicola.

    • Grandpaonfire

      February 2, 2022 at 10:32 pm

      yeah her speech writer did well here

  19. Ligia Sommers

    February 2, 2022 at 10:02 pm

    👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🙏🏻✨🌹

  20. wojciech strzelecki

    February 2, 2022 at 11:07 pm

    Wtf is this totalitarian populist doing, boasting for the things from a century ago that she had nothing to do about? I live in Scotland and they achieve nothing and they boast about nothing, only thing they achieve is pandering to a woke mob & arresting people/ comedians for jokes towards her & ones that aren’t politically correct. All her speech was one big nothing other than populist signaling, she and her government is on a way to destroy this place economically while limiting people’s freedom, chasing fairies for out of touch with reality votes, what a disgrace.

  21. ادعوا لي بالتوفيق 🥲

    February 3, 2022 at 1:00 am

    {يوم تشهد عليهم ألسنتهم وأيديهم وارجلهم بما كانوا يعملون}
    احذر يكون حسابك شاهد عليك يوم القيامة بسبب صور المتبرجات،الاغاني او شيء محرم نشرته لا تدري متى تتوفى وما يوجد بحسابك سيكون ذنوب جارية لك تضرك بعد وفاتك،نصيحةلا تتهاون بالذنوب وأحذف كل شيء محرم في حسابك وانشر ما ينفعك لأخرتك💛

  22. Mark A

    February 3, 2022 at 1:08 am

    utter nonsense from a babbling sphincter

  23. Kongolox

    February 3, 2022 at 2:29 am

    Nothing new here.. wasted 8min

  24. aant

    February 3, 2022 at 4:07 am

    x

  25. Ben Anderson

    February 3, 2022 at 4:43 am

    Go Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💙🤍

  26. jai peace

    February 3, 2022 at 6:05 am

    Everyone knows that Scotland is doing this to protect it’s National Animal🦄🍀

    • Mogwai786

      February 3, 2022 at 3:31 pm

      WRONG. We’re doing it to protect the Loch Ness Monster.

    • jai peace

      February 3, 2022 at 3:58 pm

      @Mogwai786 Give that monster a big hug, Amen

    • adrian heath

      February 4, 2022 at 7:27 pm

      I didn’t know Sturgeon was it’s national animal but it makes sense.

    • Scotland Dumfries and Galloway Lochmaben

      February 4, 2022 at 9:53 pm

      this woman and her party are destroying Scotland..

    • Mogwai786

      February 4, 2022 at 10:10 pm

      @Scotland Dumfries and Galloway Lochmaben That’s hyperbolic nonsense.

  27. Nayt FB

    February 3, 2022 at 6:23 am

    Why don’t just big countries stop first it’s like an ego battle

  28. Pablo H

    February 3, 2022 at 6:39 am

    She misses out the point that England pay for most of it

    • John Smith

      February 3, 2022 at 8:05 am

      Okay, so let’s just take your argument as a given… what point are you trying to make?

    • Pablo H

      February 3, 2022 at 10:20 am

      @John Smith Because she’s the “leader” of the SNP who want independence from the UK, which if they got their wish they wouldn’t be able to afford any of these pipe dreams.

    • John Smith

      February 3, 2022 at 10:43 am

      @Pablo H Okay, but what does this have to do with anything? She quips about Scotland not being independent “yet” but this talk isn’t about Scottish independence, it’s about the role smaller and devolved countries can play in combating the climate emergency… nor was the talk about funding… like what are you even arguing against?

    • David Steel

      February 4, 2022 at 3:47 pm

      Pablo H you appear to be one of several Unionst Trolls appearing on this comment thread saying the same thing. This is an old myth about England paying. Even the Westminster Parliament rejected a petition on grounds of ” unsubstantiated claims including claims about English taxpayers subsidising those in Scotland,Wales and Nothern.Ireland

      1) Scotland earns the UK in tax revenues more than it spends.
      2) England spends more than it earns.
      3) England takes Scotland’s surplus to help pay for it’s debts.
      4) It then assigns a share of it’s debt to Scotland bigger than Scotland’s surplus.
      5) It then claims that this shows Scotland runs at a deficit

      This however is nothing to do with the point of the Ted Talk , that Nicola Sturgeon is making about the role of small countries and climate change as John Smith aptly put it.

  29. Pablo H

    February 3, 2022 at 6:44 am

    See how great Scotland does when it isn’t suckling at England’s teat

  30. The Wanderer

    February 3, 2022 at 6:57 am

    The earth, with the Sun’s influence, makes the biggest impact on climate change. The impact that all of humanity has is very insignificant, like a single drop of water into the Pacific Ocean.

    • Kasperi Hongisto

      February 3, 2022 at 7:32 am

      I think we should know by now that humans have a HUGE impact. Think about transportation, land use, waste management and the explosive increase of population which increases the impact of all and else of the above. Please stop spreading misinformation, take responsibility.

    • The Wanderer

      February 3, 2022 at 8:30 am

      The earth has gone through several ice ages in the history of its existence. And scientists are predicting the next ice age may begin in about 1,500 years. Maybe they are spreading misinformation as well.

  31. Anim Mahmud

    February 3, 2022 at 12:00 pm

    I barely expected the first question.🤣🤣🤣

  32. Greig Sanderson

    February 3, 2022 at 12:04 pm

    Why are our electricity bills so high? The wave turbines must be really worth while lol. We have oil and gas in the country, but import it from other countries, which is a lot worse for the environment, and Scotland doesn’t make money from it, they pay the other countries. Bonkers. No chance in Scotland ever being independent, especially with the current debt 2022.

  33. Kevin

    February 3, 2022 at 2:09 pm

    Wind turbines have oil to lubricate the gearbox and other parts were does that come from out the ground and oh you use welding to make the steel structure ,how is steel made. Stop drilling for oils how many different products are made from oil ????
    Climate change doing away with fossil fuel where’s the tax going to come from ie no petrol and diesel cars .What do ship engines use for fuel
    Put wind turbines in all parliaments there enough hot air there

  34. B Z

    February 3, 2022 at 2:37 pm

    Now are these small countries you mention powered by bipartisan criminal thugs like in the US and China?

  35. Ian Mia

    February 3, 2022 at 3:21 pm

    Meanwhile me in a developing country: Look how cute my solar panel is powering this tiny lamp

  36. Samskrta Jijivisha

    February 3, 2022 at 4:32 pm

    How condescending you are
    First we deteriorate everything and then we cry I am very innocent.

  37. TearsInTheRain

    February 3, 2022 at 5:12 pm

    I’m happy that you find the time to speak on TED!
    The deals that were signed at COP-26 have already not been fulfilled, so not sure why you are on here! And just to add, without Englands financial help Scotland would collapse.

    • Fergus Denoon

      February 4, 2022 at 12:15 pm

      England’s financial help?…. lol, £2,6trillion in debt… England isn’t paying it’s own way, it does leach of the other nations of the UK, that’s why it’s the big fat one.
      how is it possible for it to financially help anyone when it can’t even balance it’s own books…

      Banks, Not England, Banks, borrowing money is where the money comes from, England doesn’t pay for it, the UK pays for it, the borrowing is done in Scotland’s name also.

    • David Steel

      February 4, 2022 at 4:05 pm

      You must be a friend of Pablo H, so I will say the same to you.
      There appears to be several Unionst Trolls appearing on this comment thread saying the same thing. This is an old myth about England paying. Even the Westminster Parliament rejected a petition on grounds of ” unsubstantiated claims including claims about English taxpayers subsidising those in Scotland,Wales and Nothern.Ireland

      1) Scotland earns the UK in tax revenues more than it spends.
      2) England spends more than it earns.
      3) England takes Scotland’s surplus to help pay for it’s debts.
      4) It then assigns a share of it’s debt to Scotland bigger than Scotland’s surplus.
      5) It then claims that this shows Scotland runs at a deficit

      This however is nothing to do with the point of the Ted Talk , that Nicola Sturgeon is making about the role of small countries and climate change.

    • phil hughes

      February 5, 2022 at 2:43 pm

      So that’s why Scotland’s revenue exceeds is expenditure

  38. Super Ray

    February 3, 2022 at 7:46 pm

    This woman belongs in prison

  39. Tom Bown

    February 3, 2022 at 9:42 pm

    Haha, Nicola, UK accounts for 0.014 of co2 so any reduction by UK make no difference. Biggest wind farms delaminating into the sea.

  40. Geralt Of Rivea

    February 3, 2022 at 11:06 pm

    Talks the talk but ….

  41. freggo

    February 4, 2022 at 2:55 am

    3:09 YET… 🙂

  42. Raluca

    February 4, 2022 at 10:10 am

    They can’t. This is bulshit. The impact is not “big”.

  43. Spam Mouse

    February 4, 2022 at 11:51 am

    Her plans for the future are based on North Sea oil and The English taxpayer !!!!!!!!!!!!!

  44. Scotland Dumfries and Galloway Lochmaben

    February 4, 2022 at 6:06 pm

    while the Scottish people struggle to get doctors appointments, while she talks about cutting the bottom of school classroom doors because she wont invest in better filtration for schools. when people are dying waiting 14 hours and more for an ambulance…dying waiting for cancer diagnosis or treatment…whilst people and business in Scotland are begging for help she can stand there and make statements about climate change…

    • Matt D

      February 4, 2022 at 11:25 pm

      In the long-term, climate change will damage the economy and the health of the population. Responsible politicians like Nicola are thinking beyond the current news cycle. We need more politicians like her.

    • Mogwai786

      February 5, 2022 at 12:23 am

      @Jane Purdie the climate crisis is the biggest existential threat facing human kind and the planet. As important schools and health are, they pale in coparision to the climate timebomb facing us as we sit back and do nothing. Besides, a lot of the problems with education and health as faced elsewhere in the UK, so it’s not clear why you think the root problem is Sturgeon and the SNP.

  45. Scottish village Lochmaben most beautiful loch's

    February 4, 2022 at 6:06 pm

    while the Scottish people struggle to get doctors appointments, while she talks about cutting the bottom of school classroom doors because she wont invest in better filtration for schools. when people are dying waiting 14 hours and more for an ambulance…dying waiting for cancer diagnosis or treatment…whilst people and business in Scotland are begging for help she can stand there and make statements about climate change…

    • Michael Farrell

      February 5, 2022 at 4:23 pm

      @Mogwai786 Because some hack journalist told them ‘SNP bad’ and they’re too dim-witted to attempt to formulate an opinion of their own based on measurable and demonstrable facts

  46. Jeffrey Grant

    February 4, 2022 at 9:17 pm

    Bring back Jimmy boil from the gourbles

  47. HamShanks

    February 5, 2022 at 5:36 am

    There’s no man made global warming. The Atmosphere is 79,% nitrogen, 20.9% oxygen. 0.1% is made up of other gases including C02 which is only 0.04%. Mans effect on that is tiny. It’s the gas we emit in various ways so is being used to control us. All the predictions have been debunked. Ice caps still here and increasing in size. Record snowfalls around the world. That was all supposed to be gone about 5 plus years ago. It’s all a lie and is being used to control us. Right up nicola sturgeons street. Basically unopposed power to control us and take away our freedom. Look at Covid. Unbelievable. Anyway when the jannys cut the bottom of the doors, how much heat will be lost??

  48. Be Realistic

    February 5, 2022 at 11:55 am

    too late, move to higher ground

  49. Jan Oginski

    February 5, 2022 at 3:33 pm

    This is a parochial peasant. And this clown piggy backing on other people’s achievements doesn’t cut it. And by the way size often does matter. It depends on the context. Any efforts made in the northern province will have zero effect on Global warming,no matter how well meaning. This a political posturing by a nobody, who the fck are you. a provincial lawyer made bad.

  50. Dr Faridon Amdjadi

    February 5, 2022 at 3:50 pm

    Do something about Glasgow’s public roads first.

  51. ANDREW CODD

    February 5, 2022 at 4:04 pm

    Small nations must do their bit, mainly by not taking part in the race to the bottom in terms of deregulation. Tax and wages are also something countries compete on. I’m Scottish and a supporter of independence but wouldn’t it be great if the whole concept of nations could be consigned to history? Just to stop them vying for investment in a game of most evil country wins.

  52. Michael Farrell

    February 5, 2022 at 4:21 pm

    Incoming troll comments from angry British nationalists trying to convince everyone that the SNP and Nicola Sturgeon are the worst thing to ever happen to Scotland and that we all hate her even though we continue to vote her and her party in and they do favourably in the polls. I’m not a big fan of the SNP, they could do with improvements in a lot of areas but these disingenuous unionist lying hacks piss me off a lot more than the SNP ever could

  53. Richard Graham

    February 6, 2022 at 7:22 am

    For the love of God I cannot find anything on nicola talking about the crisis in Ukraine. Why is this ? In Scotland for years now we have had Russian bombers invading our airspace so if they have been doing this as trial runs we should be on a state of high alert at this moment . In a nut shell , if we were to be attacked she would have to be held responsible for not informing the people of Scotland which would be a war crime. Is it a case of the Russian oligarchs have lined there pockets just like they have done down south . It seems to be a bit of a fashion now to sell out .

  54. N21

    February 6, 2022 at 4:28 pm

    The state of it. Who’d listen to that? Looks like it’s been dragged through a hedge.

  55. oh dear! me

    February 6, 2022 at 10:28 pm

    Covid scam climate scam wake up

  56. CLonie

    February 7, 2022 at 5:31 pm

    Renewable energy is a scam and Sturgeon is the biggest scam artist Scotland has ever seen

  57. Julia Campbell

    February 7, 2022 at 6:21 pm

    Brilliant Ted talk by Nicola Sturgeon. Next step to get the levers of power in our own hands, then we’ll make it work

  58. N330AA

    February 7, 2022 at 7:10 pm

    Is this the same woman that wanted to bankroll an independent Scotland on oil revenues?

  59. Rod Stewart

    February 7, 2022 at 7:20 pm

    Hahaha she’s lost so many supporters because of this!

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