On February 28, 2016, Leonardo DiCaprio was finally awarded the prestigious Oscar him and most movie fans have been waiting for since 1993. Losing or being completely snubbed altogether for roles such as Arnie Grape "What’s Eating Gilbert Grape", Danny Archer "Blood Diamond", Jordan Belfort "The Wolf of Wall Street", Romeo "Romeo + Juliet", and Calvin Candie "Django Unchained", many view this as a cumulative Oscar, finally rewarding Leo for his countless legendary roles and superb acting abilities.
Although watching his peers give him a standing ovation and seeing his modest grin as he finally held the trophy were some of the best sights of the night, his acceptance speech was actually one of the most important moments of the night.
While many were waiting for a joke or a teary delivery of thanks, Leo focused on bringing an important issue to light. After thanking his co-star Tom Hardy, his director Alejandro González Iñárritu, and many other people in his life, including Martin Scorsese and his parents, he turned his focus to an important message about climate change, by pointing out the main relationship in "The Revenant" – “man’s relationship to the natural world.”
He went on to say that 2015 was the hottest year in recorded history and that the film taking place in the Northern American landscape had to be shot at the “southern tip of this planet just to be able to find snow.” And this is true. They shot most of "The Revenant" in Canada, but by the time they had to shoot some final scenes, it had become too warm and they moved production to the tip of Argentina in order to be able to work in a snowy landscape.
While the night was filled with Chris Rock’s provocative statements and the hashtag “#OscarsSoWhite” circulating the internet, Leo’s claim that “climate change is real” was the most important declaration at the awards ceremony.
As a long-time environmentalist, Leo’s claim does not go unfounded. 2015 was indeed the hottest year on record. Before that, it was 2014. Before that, it was 2013. And so on. Sea levels are rising, countries are losing acres of ice, extreme weather is becoming even more extreme, and arctic sea ice has lost 80 percent of its volume from 1979 to 2012. These changes can have drastic effects on how we sustain our livelihood, throwing wrenches in everything from agriculture to the economy. You can argue that it’s the natural cycle of the earth or that it’s been brought on by humans’ excessive emissions of greenhouse gases, environmentally unsafe methods used by corporations, or the government’s unwillingness to substantially fund endeavors to help protect the environment. You can argue a combination of all of these reasons. Either way, Leo is right when he says that it is the “most urgent threat facing our entire species.”
While the big topic most people focused on that night was the devastating lack of non-white nominees, climate change and the danger it poses for our species is, and always has been, infinitely more important than any social issue out there. Any fight for equality among humans (be it gay rights, feminism, etc.) will always be surpassed by the looming environmental crisis. While it is important to repair minority and race relations, it is even more important to have a sustainable Earth on which to do so.
We can’t let topical issues distract us from this. While it is important to fight for causes you believe in and to support the end of –isms and phobias alike, the environment – the world we live in, the world our children will live in, and the world we are destroying – should undoubtedly be the first priority. People may argue that the economy or North Korean and Iranian threats of nuclear war are more important. I ask those people to take a step back and weigh how important those will seem when shorelines disappear and food is scarce for even the most well off. This is not an exaggeration. This is the future we are headed towards if we don’t take action and “work collectively together and stop procrastinating.”
Watch Leo's full speech below
What can I do to help mitigate climate change? Also, with an important election coming up, be sure to support leaders who are willing to put time and effort into conservation and preservation of the environment.
