The 2018 Greenshine New Energy $1,000 College Scholarship Contest Winner

Congratulations to the 2018 Greenshine New Energy $1,000 College Scholarship Contest winner:

Amy Figurski

Lampasas, TXTexas A&M

Entrants were asked to write an essay expressing how they think green energy technology will change in the next 30 years and what the impact on our lives will be

We received more than 200 submissions from students in the U.S. and Amy came out on top. They took home $1,000 for their thoughtful, engaging essay, which we’ve published here with their permission:

AMY FIGURSKI

2018 Going On 2048

Picture this: It’s the year 2048. You awake to the delightful sizzling of bacon being made by your own personal kitchen robot, and you’re momentarily served breakfast in bed. Your electronic closet has already laid your clothes out for you, and the shower in a can is patiently awaiting to cure your stink. Within only a few minutes, with the help of these beneficial creations plus dozens of others, you’re heading out to work– traveling in your self-driving car, of course. Crazy to think about, right? May even sound a bit impossible? Technology is constantly improving, and is sure to drastically transform as the upcoming years fly by. I believe the next thirty years hold unbelievable technological advancements for our society– from cell phones to solar power, and everything in-between.

When I picture the future, I see one where issues we are forced to trudge through today have been obliterated by genius projects. For example, car accidents are absolutely unheard of, for all cars can only drive/fly themselves. I also see there being a way doctors can purposefully erase one’s memories, which would very much benefit those who suffer from PTSD, childhood abuse, and so much more. Additionally, cancer will finally be cured, and wretched sicknesses are no longer able to take our dearest loved ones away from us. Although these hopes for the future may seem impractical to some, I am confident in the light at the end of the tunnel, and am certain that the majority of the bumps we come across in the rocky  road today will be smoothed out in tomorrow’s paved route.

Though it can be entertaining to think about the never-ending outcomes our near future potentially holds and how they’ll impact both ourselves and the generations to come, it’s not often that we think about the serious side, which, ironically, should be at the top of the list of our main concerns. Earth today has more than enough severe issues– such as pollution, climate change, as well as detrimental animals going extinct. With the path we’re on, we could easily end up like the Disney movie, “Wall-E,” where all citizens of the Earth are eventually forced to live up in outer space due to the world’s steady increase of ultimately poor living conditions.

We have always been extremely dependent upon burning fossil fuels that transform into energy; however, using nonrenewable fossil fuels, like that of oil, gas, and coal, is quickly coming back to bite us, and is turning out to be a pretty significant issue. For instance, climate change is becoming a larger problem as time goes on– the main source behind it being our utter reliance on these fuels. Our continuous use of fossil fuels has led to outrageous amounts of pollutants infecting our, once clean, air and water. Over the past years, the demand for fossil fuels has skyrocketed along with amounts of prices and sizes of energy bills. We have become so accustomed to leaning on fossil fuels, for we’ve never seen a life without them in it. Be that as it may, where will we turn when these nonrenewable sources suddenly run scarce?

Green energy is the obvious solution to this predicament. Clean, renewable energy has always been right at our fingertips. Green energy comes from natural sources such as sunlight, wind, rain, and geothermal heat (to name only a couple). These energy resources are renewable, meaning they’re naturally replenished. In complete contrast, fossil fuels are a resource that take millions of years to develop and are slowly diminishing as we continue using them. With a softer impact on the environment, using renewable energy will help to protect our planet by reducing the crazy amount of carbon emissions that we produce. By using renewable energy sources, we will also reduce our continuous dependence on fossil fuel gas and oil reserves, which means that we can successfully avoid the rising cost of energy bills and improve our energy security.

I strongly believe that a majority humankind in the near future will intelligently turn to renewable resources in hopes of preserving our Earth. By the year 2048, I predict our fossil fuels will run out, forcing those who refuse to accustom to renewable sources to jump off the fossil fuel train, or to suffer. As soon as we rid ourselves of fossil fuels, our lives will be lived more efficiently and the human race will leave a much smaller, healthier impact on the world. Fingers crossed, in all seriousness, we will never have to endure the challenge of frantically searching for another place to live, or considering death because of the mere fact that Earth can no longer withstand to provide for our lives.

Great work, Amy! Best wishes to you throughout your college career and beyond.