U1-FROM PROBLEMS TO SOLUTIONS从问题重重到迎刃而解

FROM PROBLEMS TO SOLUTIONS

Economic development is necessary if we want to improve society. There comes a time when the old must give way to the new, and it is not possible to preserve everything from our past as we move towards the future. Finding and keeping the right balance between progress and the protection of cultural sites can be a big challenge.

Big challenges, however, can sometimes lead to great solutions. In the 1950s, the Egyptian government wanted to build a new dam across the Nile in order to control floods, produce electricity, and supply water to more farmers in the area. But the proposal led to protests. Water from the dam would likely damage a number of temples and destroy cultural relics that were an important part of Egypt’s cultural heritage. After listening to the scientists who had studied the problem, and citizens who lived near the dam, the government turned to the United Nations for help in 1959.

A committee was established to limit damage to the Egyptian buildings and prevent the loss of cultural relics. The group asked for contributions from different departments and raisedfunds within the international community. Experts investigated the issue, conducted several tests, and then made a proposal for how the buildings could be saved. Finally, a document was signed, and the work began in 1960.

The project brought together governments and environmentalists from around the world. Temples and other cultural sites were taken down piece by piece, and then moved and put back together again in a place where they were safe from the water. In 1961, German engineers moved the first temple. Over the next 20 years, thousands of engineers and workers rescued 22 temples and countless cultural relics. Fifty countries donated nearly $80 million to the project.

When the project ended in 1980, it was considered a great success. Not only had the countries found a path to the future that did not run over the relics of the past, but they had also learnt that it was possible for countries to work together to build a better tomorrow.

The spirit of the Aswan Dam project is still alive today. Perhaps the best example is shown by UNESCO, which runs a programme that prevents world cultural heritage sites around the world fromdisappearing. If a problem seems too difficult for a single nation, the global community can sometimes provide a solution.

从问题重重到迎刃而解

如果我们想社会进步，就必须发展经济。新旧更替的时代已经到来，在走向未来的过程中，我们不可能将过去的一切都保存下来。在进步与文化遗址保护之间寻找并保持适当的平衡可能是一个巨大的挑战。

然而，巨大的挑战有时会带来很好的解决方案。20世纪50年代，埃及政府希望在尼罗河上修建一座新的水坝，以控制洪水，发电和向该地区更多的农民供水。但是该提议引发了抗议。大坝中的水很可能会破坏许多寺庙，并破坏埃及文化遗产中重要的文物。在听取了研究这一问题的科学家以及住在大坝附近的居民的意见后，政府于1959年向联合国求助。

委员会成立了，以减少对埃及建筑的破坏和防止文物的损失。委员会要求各部门捐款，并在国际社会筹集资金。专家们对该问题进行了调查，进行了几次测试，然后就如何保存这些建筑物提出了建议。最后，签署了一份文件，这项工作于1960年开始动工。

该项目汇集了来自世界各地的政府和环保主义者。寺庙和其他文化遗址被逐一拆除，然后移至安全的地方重新放置，使其远离水源。1961年，德国工程师搬迁了第一座庙宇。在接下来的20年里，成千上万的工程师和工人拯救了22座寺庙和无数的文物。五十个国家为该项目捐款近8000万美元。

当该项目于1980年完工时，它被认为是巨大的成功。这些国家不仅找到了一条不以牺牲古迹为代价的未来发展之路，而且明白了多个国家合作共创美好未来的可能性。

如今，阿斯旺水坝工程的精神仍然存在。也许最好的例子就是联合国教科文组织，它开展了一项防止世界各地世界文化遗产消失的计划。如果一个问题对于一个国家而言似乎太困难，那么国际社会有时可以提供解决方案。