文/張曉 李碗容 譯/周媛

“我把這里當成了自己的家，因為朋友除了有福同享，更應該有難同當。我也相信武漢能夠渡過難關，中國有能力處理好這次疫情危機?！被貞浧鹪谖錆h遭遇新冠肺炎疫情的經(jīng)歷，2020年度中國政府友誼獎獲得者、江漢大學副教授薩拉·普拉托（Sara Platto，意大利）這樣說。

2020年新冠肺炎疫情期間，她4次婉拒撤僑，選擇和武漢人民一起堅守家園，并通過互聯(lián)網(wǎng)向國際社會講述武漢抗疫故事。她將武漢的抗疫過程和親身經(jīng)歷撰寫成書，已在意大利出版。今年3月，中文版《早安，武漢》由天津新蕾出版社出版。在中國工作生活15年，薩拉和14歲的兒子馬特奧早已經(jīng)把這片熟悉的土地當成自己的家。家，是愛，是溫暖與守護。

“It is my home, and friends always share happiness and suffering. However, I believe that Wuhan will ride over difficulties and that China can handle the epidemic well,” said Sara Platto (Italian), winner of the 2020 Chinese Government Friendship Award and associate professor of Jianghan University, when recalling her experience with COVID—19 in Wuhan.

During the epidemic in 2020, she declined evacuation from Wuhan four times. She stayed with the people in Wuhan and told the stories about Wuhan’s efforts to fight COVID—19 to the world through the Internet. She has written a book published in Italy about the anti-epidemic battle and her personal experience in Wuhan. The Chinese version of Good Morning, Wuhan was published this March. China, the land where Sara and her 14-year-old son Mateo have worked and lived for 15 years, has become their beautiful and warm homeland to be protected.

In 2007, Sara, who is firmly devoted to the protection and research of wild animals worldwide, paid her first visit to China and gave a keynote speech on the link between humans and dolphins upon the invitation from the Institute of Hydrobiology Chinese Academy of Sciences. Here, she met the person who became her supervisor. She was then appointed as a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute in Wuhan, marking the start of her inseparable bond with China. “I like Wuhan very much, and the people of Wuhan are very hospitable,” said Sara when recalling her first visit to Wuhan.

In 2017, she became an associate professor providing courses on animal behavior and animal welfare at the College of Life Science, Jianghan University. “Animals affect humans, and animal behavior and animal welfare are topics worldwide Knowledge related to that is significant for life sciences, environmental science, and food safety,” said Sara. Therefore, she actively encouraged students to learn about animal behavior and animal welfare, promoting harmonious coexistence between humans and animals.

婉拒撤僑“我相信中國”

2007年，長期致力于世界野生動物保護與研究的薩拉首次來到中國，受中科院水生生物研究所邀請參加一場關于人類與海豚的主題演講。在這里，她遇到了自己后來的導師，成為位于武漢的中國科學院水生生物研究所博士后，從此與中國結下了難以割舍的情緣?！拔液芟矚g武漢，武漢人民很熱情?！被貞浧鸬谝淮蝸砦錆h，薩拉談道。

2017年，她成為江漢大學生命科學學院副教授，主講動物行為學、動物福利等課程?！皠游锏那闆r也會影響到人類，在國際上動物行為學和動物福利很受關注。了解這些知識，對學習生命科學、環(huán)境學和食品安全都有意義?！彼_拉介紹。她號召學校學生積極學習動物行為學、動物福利相關內容，一同幫助人類和動物架起和諧共處的橋梁。

轉眼在中國已經(jīng)生活了15年，薩拉愛上了中國書法，喜歡喝中國茶，愛吃武漢的特色小吃熱干面。“馬特奧就是在北京出生的。”她說了兒子的一個小故事，“有一次馬特奧說夢話。我只聽得懂其中幾個字，像是打鼓、節(jié)拍、拿去。我驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)馬特奧在夢中說的，竟然是中文！”她曾經(jīng)在某個地方讀到這樣的信息：想知道一個人的母語是什么，就看他做夢和數(shù)數(shù)時說哪種語言?！斑@么說，馬特奧的母語是中文嘍！我在中國住了這么多年，雖然聽力還行，中文卻說得很爛，但馬特奧的中文比我好多了！”

薩拉和兒子已經(jīng)把中國當作第二故鄉(xiāng)，每兩三年才會回一次位于意大利北部的家鄉(xiāng)布雷西亞。那里，有薩拉的父母和妹妹?！拔腋改改昙o已經(jīng)大了，不方便來武漢了?！?020年新冠肺炎疫情肆虐武漢，“武漢封城的那一天，其實也是我兒子的生日。我們決定留下來，這不僅是我的決定，也是我兒子的決定，我們在武漢生活差不多十年了，這里就是我們的家?！?月3日，薩拉收到通知可以通過意大利使館的撤僑航班回國，已經(jīng)拒絕過一次的薩拉再次婉言拒絕返回意大利。盡管當時意大利還沒有出現(xiàn)病例，她說：“武漢是我的家，我相信中國?！彼_拉拒絕回國的消息讓母親非常生氣。一天深夜她接到了妹妹的電話，說媽媽甚至想給意大利外交部打電話讓他們強行把她帶回國。凌晨3點，看到意大利大使館的來電，薩拉沒有接，她說當時真的擔心大使館告訴自己媽媽去意大利外交部訴苦抱怨。最終，在第10次來電時，薩拉接了，這次大使館是來尋求幫助的。原來在撤僑時，一個意大利孩子因為發(fā)燒被留在了武漢機場。隨后兩周，薩拉和意大利大使館、武漢、中國生物多樣性保護與綠色基金會積極溝通，最終成功幫助孩子返回意大利。

Having been in China for 15 years, Sara has a deep love for Chinese calligraphy, Chinese tea, and hot and dry noodles, a local snack in Wuhan. “Matteo was born in Beijing.” said Sara, “Matteo once talked in his sleep, and I only heard Chinese words like ‘drum,’ ‘rhythm,’ and ‘take.’ To my surprise, Matteo was speaking Chinese in his dream! “It’s said that one can tell the mother language of others according to the language they speak in the dream and when counting numbers.” So, Matteo’s mother language is Chinese! After living in China for many years, I can understand what others are saying, but I still cannot speak Chinese well. Matteo’s Chinese is much better than mine!”

China has become the second home of Sara and her son. They return to their hometown in Brescia in northern Italy every two or three years to reunite with their parents and sister. “My parents are too old to come to Wuhan,” Sara commented. In 2020, COVID—19 broke out in Wuhan. “The day when Wuhan was locked down was my son’s birthday. So, my son and I decided to stay. We have lived in Wuhan for almost ten years. It is our home.” On February 3, Sara was notified that she could return to Italy via the evacuation flight from the Italian Embassy. Even though there were no COVID—19 cases in Italy at that time, she politely refused the suggestion once again. She said: “Wuhan is my home, and I have faith in China.” Sara’s refusal to return to Italy made her mother terribly angry. In a late evening phone call, her sister told Sara that their mom was planning to call the Italian Foreign Ministry to ask to push her daughter to come back home. At 3 a.m., she received a call from the Italian embassy. She let the call go unanswered at different times because she was afraid they would tell her that her mom had complained at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Finally, Sara answered the 10th phone call. The Italian Embassy called not because of her mother but to ask for help. An Italian teenager was left at Wuhan airport during the evacuation because he came down with a fever. From that moment, Sara started a series of phone calls that would initiate the two weeks long coordinated work with the Italian Embassy, Wuhan authorities, and China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation (CBCGDF) to help the boy to return to Italy.

During the epidemic, Sara received help and care from her neighbors and the school. The foreign teacher administrator of Jianghan University supplied staple food, meat, eggs, vegetables, and fruits regularly and bought her much-needed cheese by all manner of means. Neighbors helped her shop for groceries online and brought her vegetables and pasta. “My neighbor left me an English note saying ‘Sara, be strong. China will solve the problem.’” Impressed by the warmth of the local people, Sara actively shared her life in Wuhan through international social media platforms, where she told stories about China’s battle against the epidemic. “My Italian friends and I in Wuhan have a social media account where we exchange information frequently. We are furious about false reports on the epidemic in Wuhan,” stated Sara.

疫情期間，薩拉得到了鄰居和學校的諸多幫助和關愛，江漢大學外教管理員及時定期送來主食、肉蛋、蔬菜和水果，還輾轉多處給她買來急需的芝士。鄰居幫助她線上買菜，還給她帶來了蔬菜和意大利面?！拔业囊晃秽従舆€用英文給我留字條，上面寫著‘薩拉，堅強些，中國會解決這個難題的’?！北陡袦嘏耐瑫r，薩拉積極通過國際社交平臺分享在武漢的生活情況，講述中國戰(zhàn)“疫”故事，“我們留在武漢的意大利好友還有一個群，大家平常在群里分享情況，看到一些關于武漢疫情的不實內容，我們都很氣憤。”薩拉回憶。

“曾有一家境外媒體來電采訪我，問我現(xiàn)在武漢是否不讓外出，我說仍然可以外出，不過只能是購買食物，結果對方說謝謝、再見。我感覺很不好，這個人并不想知道真相，只是想得到符合她預期的信息?！币虼耍_拉通過Instagram等國際社交網(wǎng)絡發(fā)布武漢的真實情況，她在武漢不停地發(fā)出一條條圖片和視頻信息：學校發(fā)放的物資塞滿了小車的后備廂、小區(qū)居民送來的食物和鄰居的暖心字條、社區(qū)發(fā)放愛心菜、小區(qū)嚴格封控、武漢復蘇場景……幾十家海外媒體通過各種途徑聯(lián)系上薩拉，她在電話里、視頻中，向全球的人們展示自己在武漢的生活和樂觀心態(tài)，“我就是想展現(xiàn)這里的實情”。

后來，意大利不幸成為疫情重災區(qū)，她的家鄉(xiāng)甚至成了意大利死亡率最高的地區(qū)之一。她通過視頻給意大利中學生上了一堂生動的疫情教育課，她拿著通信工具帶意大利學生看武漢的城市街道，讓他們了解中國真實的抗疫舉措。她也通過社交平臺給意大利同胞和其他國家的人們提供一些疫情期間的生活建議。

“我寫這本書的初衷是展現(xiàn)武漢的真實面貌，我也在思考武漢的未來。這本書傳遞了希望，鼓勵人們在像新冠肺炎疫情這樣的大災難面前依然要抱有希望，生活的腳步從不停歇，我們要展望未來?！?/p>

“A foreign media asked me whether I was forbidden from going outside my home in Wuhan during an interview. I said that I was allowed to walk out of the house to buy food. She ended the interview with ‘thank you’ and ‘goodbye.’ I got a bad feeling. I knew that she only wanted to get information that matches her expectations rather than the truth.” Therefore, Sara shared true stories about Wuhan through Instagram and other international social networks and kept sending pictures and videos about trunks filled with supplies delivered by the school, the food sent by community residents and neighbors, heart-warming notes, groceries provided by the community, strict epidemic control measures in the community and the recovery of Wuhan. Dozens of overseas media contacted Sara through various channels. She showed her life in Wuhan and optimistic attitude to people worldwide on the phone and in videos. “I just want to let others know what is happening here.”

Unfortunately, Italy was severely hit by COVID—19 later. Her hometown was one of the two places in Italy with the highest death rate. Through video, she gave a vivid lecture on epidemic control to middle and high school students in Italy. She showed them the streets in Wuhan to help them understand epidemic control measures in China. She also provided tips for daily living during the epidemic to Italians and people in other countries through social platforms.

“My book mainly describes the experiences of my son and me in Wuhan during the lockdown. It has been published in Italy, and the Chinese version will soon be published. I wrote this book to show people the real Wuhan and my thoughts about the future of this city. It conveys hope and encourages people to remain positive despite disasters like COVID—19. Life never stops, and we must look forward to the future.”

Sara has long been committed to animal behavior and animal welfare research. As a veterinarian, she also uses her professional advantages to contribute to the fight against the pandemic. One of the studies explored the relationship between COVID—19 and a coronavirus isolated from pangolins. In addition, as an expert in animal behavior research, she has established cooperation with the authoritative international platform for zoonosis to facilitate the international anti-epidemic work actively.

Sara expressed that the loss of biodiversity has created favorable conditions for the occurrence of epidemics such as the COVID—19. For example, deforestation has dramatically enhanced the contact between human beings and wild animals. Bats can quickly adapt to where people reside among wild animals, such as houses, barns, arable land, and orchards. The research found that bats are the primary hosts of several coronaviruses. Still, they have evolved unique physiological and immune systems to resist it, while viruses can infect other species such as humans. “As we interact with wild animals more and more frequently, we have to learn more about these viruses inside animals, especially how they are spread to other species.”

研究動物“我們要積極保護野生動物”

薩拉長期從事動物行為學、動物福利研究，疫情期間她積極發(fā)揮專業(yè)優(yōu)勢為抗疫做貢獻，參與探尋新冠病毒與穿山甲身上分離出來的一種冠狀病毒關系的項目。作為一名動物行為學研究專家，她與人獸共患病國際權威平臺建立合作，積極推動國際抗疫工作。

薩拉說，生物多樣性的喪失其實為新冠肺炎疫情的發(fā)生創(chuàng)造了條件。比如，砍伐森林大大增加了人類與野生動物的接觸。在野生動物中，蝙蝠很容易適應人類居住的環(huán)境，如房屋、谷倉、耕地、果園。研究已經(jīng)發(fā)現(xiàn)，蝙蝠是幾種冠狀病毒的主要宿主，但它們進化出了獨特的生理和免疫系統(tǒng)抵抗病毒，而病毒卻會感染人類等其他物種?！爱斘覀兣c野生動物的互動越來越頻繁，我們就必須對動物體內的這些病毒進行更多的研究和了解，尤其是它們是如何傳播給其他物種的。”

“所以我們要積極保護野生動物?！彼_拉長期從事動物行為學、動物福利研究，如極度瀕危物種長江江豚的行為、偽虎鯨在進食前后的發(fā)聲交流等。在多年的科研工作中，薩拉積極為我國《野生動物保護法》的修改提出建議，組織“動物福利：食品安全與人類健康”研討會，等等。

“So, we should also take the initiative in protecting the wild animals.” Sara has lifelong experience in animal behavior and has researched the critically endangered Yangtze finless porpoise and the vocal communication of Pseudorca crassidens before and after feeding. In long-term scientific research, Sara has actively put forward suggestions for revising the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Protection of Wildlife and organized seminars on “Animal Welfare: Food Safety and Human Wellness.”

Sara often uses her weekends to speak out for Wuhan Small Animal Rescue Center. She has worked as a veterinarian in animal rescue centers in Spain, the United States, and Canada, dealing with distinct species such as wild animals, marine mammals, reptiles, and avians. Usually, Sara will enjoy Wuhan cuisine with everyone at Chinese dinner parties while happily narrating the legendary stories of saving little animals worldwide when she was young.

During Sara’s early university years, she gained a great interest in Dolphins. “The vast coast of The Canary Islands brought me ample opportunities to get in close contact with dolphins. When I was in my fourth year of veterinary school, I won the Erasmus scholarship that allowed me to move to the Canary Islands, where I finished my last year of college. I did my master thesis on cetacean parasitology. Later, I was awarded a Ph.D. in Biology of Behavior from the University of Milan. Then, with the collaboration of a professor from the Free University of Berlin, I moved from The Canary Islands to Israel to develop my Ph.D. research on human-dolphin interaction.” Her postdoctoral thesis at the Chinese Academy of Sciences was about dolphin communication and cognition.

During the 2020 National Science and Technology Week, Sara gave a famous science lecture entitled “How Does It Sound to Be a Dolphin?” for children at Beijing Planetarium. She aroused intense interest among the young audience with a video of whales and dolphins swimming in the sea. How do dolphins “l(fā)isten” and “see”? Are dolphins as intelligent as humans? Dolphins have a lot of “skills” that humans do not possess, and dolphins have a much more comprehensive range of hearing than humans, so they can “hear” sounds that humans fail to pick up, Sara explained. Dolphins also “see” the world differently by accurately forming “holograms” in the brain through echolocation systems. “In the world of dolphins, humans look so stupid that we cannot hear sounds underwater or turn our heads into sonar generators. Are we stupid? No, we are just different from dolphins.” So, do dolphins have to be “l(fā)ike humans” to be treated as equal creatures? In a row of questions, she guides children to learn about dolphins and develop the concepts of loving and protecting wild animals.

摯愛海豚獲獎“對我來說是榮譽更是激勵”

教學科研之余，薩拉還經(jīng)常利用周末為武漢小動物救助中心宣講。曾在西班牙、美國和加拿大的動物救助中心擔任獸醫(yī)，與野生動物、海洋哺乳動物、爬行動物和鳥類等不同物種打過交道，薩拉通常會在聚餐時和大家一邊享受武漢美食，一邊幸福地講述自己年輕時在世界各地救助小動物的傳奇故事。

早在讀大學期間，海豚這種動物就引起了薩拉極大的興趣，“加納利群島廣闊的海岸為我?guī)砼c海豚親密接觸的豐富機會。大四的時候，我贏得了伊拉斯莫獎學金，于是在加納利群島完成了大學最后一年的學業(yè)，并在此完成了關于鯨類寄生蟲的碩士論文。隨后，我獲得了米蘭大學的行為生物學的博士學位，之后通過與一位德國柏林自由大學教授的合作，去以色列研究人類與海豚的互動?！彼谥袊茖W院的博士后論文也是關于海豚的交流與認知。

2020年全國科技活動周期間，薩拉在北京天文館為孩子們作了題為“聞聲識海豚”的科普講座。她以一段鯨類和海豚在大海中遨游的視頻引起了同學們強烈的興趣，海豚如何“聽”和“看”？海豚像人類一樣聰明嗎？薩拉解釋道：海豚有很多人類所不具備的“本領”，海豚的聽力范圍比人類廣泛很多，所以，它們可以“聽”到人類聽不到的聲音。海豚“看”世界的方式也和人類不同，是通過回聲定位系統(tǒng)準確地在大腦中形成“全息圖像”?！霸诤ｋ嗟氖澜缋?，我們人類會顯得相當愚蠢，我們無法在水下聽到聲音，無法把自己的腦袋變成聲吶發(fā)生器。但即便如此，我們就不聰明了嗎？不，我們只是和海豚不一樣罷了。”那么，海豚必須要“像人類一樣”才能被人類視作平等的生物來對待嗎？她在一個又一個問題中引導孩子們了解海豚，樹立熱愛和保護野生動物的意識。

狂犬病預防是薩拉的另一個科普主題。她多年深入社區(qū)傳播狂犬病預防知識，連續(xù)多年在武漢舉辦世界狂犬病日活動，與動物醫(yī)院合作開展疫苗接種，與全球狂犬病控制聯(lián)盟（GARC）合作舉辦系列講座。通過與中國生物多樣性與綠色發(fā)展基金會合作，她幫助GARC推出“狂犬病教育人員資格證書”漢化課程。每年的9月28日是世界狂犬病日。薩拉介紹說，狂犬病是一種致命但可預防的人畜共患病，病死率幾乎100%。大家都知道，被狗咬傷后要及時接種狂犬病疫苗，事實上，提前為狗接種犬用狂犬病疫苗是更經(jīng)濟有效的預防狂犬病的方法。但在中國，犬類疫苗接種率仍舊偏低。薩拉已連續(xù)幾年在武漢舉辦世界狂犬病日活動，聯(lián)合當?shù)貏游镝t(yī)院和社區(qū)開展狂犬病預防教育活動。2017年，薩拉出版《馬泰奧在多吉的世界：狗狗們如何表達情緒》（中英雙語）一書，教導兒童識別狗的肢體語言。

Rabies prevention is yet another popular science theme for Sara. She has provided rabies prevention knowledge in the community by setting up the yearly Wuhan Vaccination Campaign during the “World Rabies Day.” In collaboration with local veterinary hospitals, she conducted vaccinations and held a series of lectures with the Global Alliance for Rabies Control (GARC). In partnership with China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation, she helped GARC translate the Rabies Education Personnel Qualification Certificate courses from English to Chinese to make them available to all Chinese people interested in becoming rabies educators. Annual World Rabies Day falls on September 28th. Sara said rabies is a fatal but preventable zoonosis with a fatality rate of 100%. All should know that a rabies vaccine should be given within time after a dog’s bite. Vaccinating dogs in advance is a more economical and effective way. However, in China, the vaccination rate for dogs is still on the low side. Sara has been providing rabies prevention education activities with local animal hospitals and communities in the past few years. In 2017, Sara published Matteo in Doggy’s World (Chinese and English), which teaches children to recognize dogs’ body language.

On September 30, 2021, the 2020 and 2021 Chinese Government Friendship Awards ceremony was held in the Great Hall of the People, and Associate Professor Sara was awarded the 2020 Chinese Government Friendship Award. This is the highest honorary award set up to commend foreign experts with outstanding contributions to China’s modernization drive. “Professor Sara has contributed to biological research and teaching at Jianghan University. Furthermore, her actions during the epidemic strengthened the friendly relations between China and Italy and deepened the world’s accurate understanding of China.” Zhang Xingping, secretary of the Party committee of Jianghan University, commented on Sara’s award. He also expressed that all the teachers and students were thrilled and proud of Sara.

For the award, Sara said that she was pleasantly surprised. “I could not believe that I had won the award, but it was real, and the award certificate was in my hand. It’s an honor and inspiration for me,” Sara said that she would continue to serve as the envoy of friendly exchanges between China and Italy and between China and the international community.

2021年9月30日，2020、2021年度中國政府友誼獎頒獎儀式在人民大會堂隆重舉行。薩拉副教授榮獲2020年度中國政府友誼獎——為表彰在中國現(xiàn)代化建設中作出突出貢獻的外國專家而設立的最高榮譽獎項?！八_拉教授為江漢大學生物研究和教學作出了貢獻，疫情中她的舉措更是加強了中意友好關系，加深了世界對中國的準確認識。”江漢大學黨委書記張幸平談道，對于薩拉此次獲獎，他表示學校全體師生都很高興，也為薩拉感到驕傲。

對于此次獲獎，薩拉坦言很驚喜，“我不太相信自己獲獎了，但是拿到獲獎證書后很真實，對我來說是榮譽更是激勵?！彼_拉表示自己要繼續(xù)做中意友好往來的使者，做中國和國際社會友好往來的使者。