Born in PPM
Marylou Mauricio, photographer, shot more than 2,000 portraits for her series “Born in PPM,” which warns of the ultra-rapid growth of climate change.
ENVIRONMENT – A portrait series on the topic of climate change. No fewer than 160 heads of state and government are currently in Dubai deciding the fate of our planet's oil, gas and coal reserves for the coming decades. The exploitation of these fossil fuels is at the heart of discussions at COP28, which is taking place in one of the oil champion countries.
But how do we directly address this burning issue being negotiated on the other side of the planet? This is what the photographer Mary-Lou Mauricio wanted to show with the series “Born in PPM” (“Né en PPM”, in French). Since COP27 in Egypt, he has made 2,000 portraits of anonymous people as part of this project. For HuffPost, she talks about what motivated her to turn her back on the Gregorian calendar and record birth dates in climate units.
What does “born in PPM” mean?
These three letters are the acronym for “parts per million,” the unit of measurement used to measure the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere, the main greenhouse gas responsible for climate change. For example, in 1850, 280 ppm CO2 was measured in the atmosphere.
Since that date, which marks the second industrial revolution and the beginning of the massive use of fossil fuels, this number has continued to rise. It continues to grow every year. The oldest person I photographed, her name is Jacqueline, was born in 1925 with 305 ppm. I was born in 1980 with 340 ppm. The last baby I photographed was born in 2022 at 417 ppm.
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These portraits show the ultra-fast growth of the phenomenon. According to IPCC scientists, the next climate limit is 450 ppm. From this threshold we must expect the thawing of the permafrost and more and more fires… In short, a climatic breakthrough.
These CO2 concentration values have been appearing scientifically in graphic form for years. Why depict them in photos?
In this series of portraits I have combined irrefutable scientific data with emotions. Every time I photograph someone for Born in PPM, I interview the person about their relationship to climate change. Depending on her answer, she chooses where to write her “date of birth” in PPM on her body.
Looking for this number and writing it on your skin is a powerful gesture. The first to do this during COP21 in 2015 were activists. They wanted to denounce the impact of oil on the climate negotiations: 35 of them entered Tate Britain [musée situé à Londres] and had the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere in the year of their birth tattooed on them. For me it is a way to challenge, disrupt and show that there is a problem.
In your photos, everyone poses in their own way, with a serious look, their hands on their hearts… or even their fists or middle finger raised. What feelings have you encountered most often?
It ranges from anger to sadness to the desire to act. People pose however they want. Most of the time they ask me to put my hand forward as a “stop.” Others wonder: “Should you smile to encourage fighting or should you show your fear?” »
When I photographed Yann Arthus-Bertrand, filmmaker, photographer and climate activist, he gave me the middle finger. He was tired that day. He told me: “I spend my time fighting but nothing changes. »
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Another time, when I opened my studio to individuals, a young man came and confessed to me: “I know it exists, but it doesn't affect me and I continue to live normally.” » In his photo he is standing with his back to me and the number is written on the back of his arm.
They also photographed several scientists specializing in the subject…
Recently I published the photo of paleoclimatologist Jean Jouzel. As a former iconic member of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), he demonstrated the connection between CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere and global warming in the 1980s. Exactly! He told me how he saw the problem growing from within. But he also talked to me about the existing solutions and the urgency of implementing them.
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Scientists today find themselves in a very frustrating position: they know they have the solutions, but they clearly see that policy is not moving fast enough. Geographer Magali Reghezza, a geographer who specializes in climate change adaptation, also told me this. She wanted to put the number on the hand, the hand of action, but also the one that gives itself, as a transmission of her knowledge.
And your self-portrait? How do you feel about climate change?
I have it in my skin: I also have my 340 ppm tattooed. I am determined because I have children. If we know, we have a responsibility to act and not turn a blind eye. Our worst enemy is not the climate skeptics, but the soft-hearted people who say it is too hard to change.
In 2015, I volunteered at COP21 for the Hulot Foundation. I was very excited when the Paris Agreement was signed. I thought it would save us. What I want to say to people today is: “Don’t be like me at COP21. »
Now I have decided to take the lead, change my lifestyle and raise awareness about the problem. It is our actions, our projects, that put pressure on managers and companies. And they feel the tide changing: the proof is that they sent a record number of oil lobbyists to COP28.
See also on HuffPost:
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