In the new video, the CGI talking dinosaur makes a speech to the UN General Assembly. (Image credit: United Nations Development Programme).
In a UN video, a talking CGI dinosaur gave a passionate speech on climate change to world leaders. They will take it seriously?
According to its Twitter page, Frankie, the dinosaur bears strong resemblances to the velociraptors in the film "Jurassic World". It is voiced in English by Jack Black, a film star and musician, and in Danish by other celebrities like Game of Thrones' Nikolaj coster-Waldau.
The video begins with the CGI creature walking into the U.S. General Assembly, New York to the delight of delegates. After having a funny conversation with a security guard the dinosaur grabs the microphone to deliver a speech about the imminent climate emergency. He warns humanity not to "choose death" and urges humans to "save the species."
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The video shows the dinosaur saying, "I know a lot about extinction. And let me tell you, you'd probably think this would be pretty obvious. Going extinct is bad." "At least there was an asteroid, what's your excuse?"
Extinct emissary's key message was that fossil fuel subsidies should be reduced in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and save the planet. This will be a major topic at the COP26 conference on Climate Change, which is being held in the United Kingdom.
The dinosaur said that "You're heading for a climate catastrophe, yet every year governments spend hundreds and billions of dollars on fossil fuel subsidies." He said, "Imagine if hundreds of billions of dollars were spent annually subsidizing giant meteors." "That's exactly what you are doing right now."
The speech of the dinosaur was focused on fossil fuel subsidies, and the COVID-19 pandemic. (Image credit: United Nations Development Programme).
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) released a new report Oct. 26 on fossil fuel subsidies. It released the Cretaceous Beast video and revealed that $423 billion is spent annually by world governments to support fossil fuel companies. According to UNDP statements, this would cover the cost of vaccinating everyone on Earth against COVID-19.
Live Science spoke with Michael Mann, a leading climate scientist at The Pennsylvania State University, who said that getting rid of fossil fuel subsidies was an important part of any comprehensive climate solution. Mann believes that it is impossible to avoid the climate crisis by focusing on fossil fuel subsidies.
"Cutting emissions should be the priority. One part of this is getting rid of fossil fuel subsidies. Mann stated that there are also incentives for renewables, carbon pricing, and other measures to encourage them." Mann said, "I would not want to place the onus upon any of these mechanisms. He added that we need them all.
This video highlights the chance that humanity has to make major changes due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The dinosaur stated that there is a great opportunity for humanity right now as you rebuild your economies, and bounce back from the pandemic. This is the greatest chance for humanity."
It is surreal and amusing to see a celebrity-voiced CGI dinosaur talking about climate change. But there is something unusually compelling and unexpectedly poignant in the idea that an extinct species is warning you about your own impending doom.
Mann stated that "It's not the only time that the extinctions of dinosaurs have been used in popular culture to raise awareness on the threat posed by environmental degradation to us as species." Mann said that this video could prove to be extremely effective.
The video was posted Oct. 27, across all UNDP social media channels.
Original publication on Live Science
