(3) Paperless Living vs. (6) Wildlife Conservation. Let's do it!
Paperless Living
Aaaaaaaand in the red corner, weighing in at 0 pounds is the featherweight champion of the world!!! Paperless Living!!!! Should be pretty self-explanatory. If you still have questions, you can see me after class at my office hours.
Impact on the Environment (6/15):
Most people, when they first hear 'Paperless Living' think that it's a pretty good thing for the environment. While I'm not going to argue with that idea, it's really not as good for the environment as you might think. A whole lot of the paper being used today comes either from recycled post-consumer product or from sustainably managed tree farms (there's a better word for that which is escaping me right now). And let's not even get into the extra electricity that's needed to manage all of the computers that are needed to replace that paper.
Practicality (3/10):
Trying to be completely paperless is almost impossible with our current technology. Let's say I notice that I drank the last little bit of milk out of the milk jug and I want my roommate to pick up some more from the store. I'm going to leave a Post-It Note somewhere, not go out and buy an iPhone and stick that to the front of the fridge. Right now, it's not going to happen. In fact, paper usage increased as computers became more popular, so Paperless Living may be a trend that doesn't catch on for some time.
Sustainability (9/10):
I've got to say, for all the crap I've been giving Paperless Living so far, it would be really really easy to maintain if we ever got to that point. If we find a good way to ditch paper, people will stop buying printers and then the constant temptation to print driving directions will ease up a bit.
Awesomeness (5/10):
I guess it's okay... It saves my car from being cluttered with directions to everywhere I've been in the past few years, but really, you don't see a whole lot of commercials with celebrities talking about how cool their lives are now they don't have a printer at home.
User Input (0/5):
Get those comments in, everyone!
Wildlife Conservation
Wildlife Conservation is pretty similar to Wetland Conservation except that this can cover not only places such as forests, but specific animals and types of plants. That and it's easier to turn a forest into a park than it is to turn a wetland into one.
Impact on the Environment (10/15):
Over the years, countless species have been saved from the brink of extinction by Wildlife Conservation efforts. But more importantly, cities are hotter on average than forests because the sunlight is absorbed by blacktop and concrete and all those good things as opposed to trees and plants that don't absorb heat. And even more importantly, trees and plants take in all the carbon dioxide that we have nothing better to do with than pump into the air and into the oceans.
Practicality (4/10):
Until someone can come up with a feasible way to live in tree houses, we need space for houses and movie theaters and candy shops and factories that manufacture tree houses. This is similar to Wetland Conservation, so check that one out for more.
Sustainability (9/10):
Even more than wetlands, forests will regrow the second we turn our backs for too long. I've always seen it as nature's just biding its time until we kill ourselves off or leave the planet and then it will all grow right back. For more on this idea, watch the show 'Life After People' or read the book 'The World Without Us.' As long as we don't cut down all the trees, we don't need to do much before it all bounces right back.
Awesomeness (8/10):
Forests are awesome. There's no denying that. And I have seen commercials with celebrities talking about how we should protect the Wildlife.
User Input (1/5):
On behalf of the Buckeye Trail, Wildlife Conservation gets a bonus point!
Alright, let's tally those scores!
Paperless Living: 23
Wildlife Conservation: 32
Congrats, Wildlife Conservation! You've pulled off the first upset of the Tournament! And you've beaten the most overrated concept yet! Tune in next time for the conclusion of the first round of the Green Practices Region with the match up of (2) Reducing/Reusing and (7) Energy Star Rating.
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