By Bulletin Staff, February 6, 2023
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – February 6th, 2023 – Today, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres addressed the U.N. General Assembly on his priorities. During his remarks he said:
One month ago, we turned the calendar on a new year.
But just days ago, another clock turned – the so-called Doomsday clock.
That symbolic clock was created 76 years ago by atomic scientists, including Albert Einstein.
Year after year, experts have measured humanity’s proximity to midnight – in other words, to self-destruction.
In 2023, they surveyed the state of the world – with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the runaway climate catastrophe, rising nuclear threats that are undermining global norms and institutions.
And they came to a clear conclusion.
The Doomsday Clock is now 90 seconds to midnight, which means 90 seconds to total global catastrophe.
This is the closest the clock has ever stood to humanity’s darkest hour – and closer than even during the height of the Cold War.
In truth, the Doomsday Clock is a global alarm clock.
We need to wake up – and get to work.
The Doomsday Clock referenced by Secretary-General Guterres is a product of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists and is set each year by the Bulletin’s Science and Security Board. On January 24th of this year the Clock was moved to 90 seconds to midnight.
“This year’s Doomsday Clock statement makes clear that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine undermined global norms and institutions, increased nuclear risk, and reduced the ability to mitigate runaway climate change. As Secretary-General Guterres noted, the Doomsday Clock is a global alarm clock, and we strongly support his clarion call for leaders around the world to ‘get to work.’ With the Doomsday Clock now set at 90 seconds to midnight, there is no time to waste,” said Rachel Bronson, president and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
To learn more about the issues covered by the Doomsday Clock and the Clock’s history visit https://thebulletin.org/doomsday-clock/
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