Actor Ryan Wilson told Sky News that the coronavirus pandemic is an opportunity for a “giant reset” that could allow us to step up our efforts to tackle climate change.
Best known for playing Dwight Schrute in the US version of The Office, he recently participated in climate activism.
Wilson Series on YouTube The Goof Guide to Climate Change It was released earlier this year.
His activity saw him visit Greenland to see first-hand the effects of climate change, as well as meeting Greta Thunberg.
Wilson spoke to Sky News about our special program Climate After Covid: A Green Recovery?
“It is clear that an international pandemic that is killing people effectively will take priority – and it must take priority,” Lisa Holland told Sky climate reporter Lisa Holland.
“But it’s not an either-or. Yes, it’s a priority, but it’s not like” Let’s forget climate change, let’s forget racial justice and just work on the epidemic now. “
“No. We need to work on all of these things. If the pandemic can be, this is a test of humanity, and work together to overcome issues of great difficulty, of great scope, of great international scope.
“We can do this as a human race inhabiting this planet.
“Not only as residents of Bolivia, the Netherlands and Mongolia all work in their own small fiefdoms, but work together internationally.”
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Wilson said his activism started when “I realized I needed to do something more than just a few angry tweets.”
He said, “I was what I call the ‘laggard.’ I knew this would not end it.”
Wilson said he wanted his show to be “strangely cheerful”.
“We wanted to reach a new, younger audience on a very dangerous topic, where I’m kind of a stupid who is brought along the way toward learning about it,” he explained.
“The response has been exactly what you expected. There are climate change deniers who have all the usual talking points, and very anxious people.
“But what we’ve been trying to do with this particular show is get to that average demographic that might be confused, that might be in the middle, and that might be on the fence.”
Wilson said that the post-Coronavirus world “cannot really return to normal,” adding: “This provides us with an opportunity for a giant reset, and a giant restart of our priorities going forward.”
He said individuals “can make a difference” if enough people independently decide to take action.
Wilson admitted, “One person doesn’t tip the balance.”
But he continued, “But maybe a thousand, or ten thousand, then if a hundred thousand people did the same thing.
“If a million people stop eating beef, if 10 million people start reducing their carbon footprint, and if a hundred million people start to change their ways – start bicycles instead of cars, then suddenly we can see an impact.”
Wilson expressed optimism that humanity would be able to avoid the worst effects of global warming, citing engagement on the issue among young people as a source of this optimistic assessment.
Wilson said, “We need to get out of the way, let them drive and that’s really inspiring, and it’s the number of young people who are behind the kind of drastic change that humanity will need to fix this thing.”
