The Pandemic
Many of you reading this, are living in quarantine or doing a few activities that you once could do without a care in the world. Since the start of COVID 19, our whole world is suffering what most would call chaos.
Businesses are shut down, people are working from home, the economy is slowly on the decline. Also, people must stay a minimum of six feet away from each other and wear masks. Although many parts of life seem to be falling apart there is always order amongst the chaos.
For example, the world has done something that before we would have found impossible. As a collective unit, we stopped bars and restaurants from running. We stayed indoors and most contributed to slowing the spread by wearing masks in public. Our health care workers and many other essential businesses stepped up to the dilemma and found new ways of making order and calm within the storm of an unseen threat.
Right now, the pandemic seems to be the largest problem that humankind faces. Unfortunately, there is a bigger peril that has been challenging the world. Climate Change is something that will determine the fate of all species on Earth.
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Coronavirus V.S. Climate Change
While the Coronavirus pandemic is a huge concern, there will come a time where scientists find vaccines or treatments and the world will go back to some kind of normality. Climate change is a different and more extreme kind of threat, one that will end the Earth’s existence and make problems such as COVID 19 (Coronavirus) not even a blip on anyone’s radar.
This pandemic has shown us that one person can make a difference and that we can disrupt the expected outcome. This was a wake-up call to inspire us that we do have the capabilities to fight a natural disaster and that we can choose our own ending.
Many look at climate change as too big to fight, they succumb to the worst-case scenario and say “What is the point. One person cannot change the world.” This type of negativity and lack of faith is what is ruining the planet.
We see now that one person can make an impact. By wearing masks and staying at home we have slowed the spread of a virus that could kill millions. Furthermore, this has given scientists and researchers more time to understand and develop a treatment.
It is our small yet large actions that can change the course of climate change. It is people who have stubborn optimism that will be the planet’s saving grace.
Otter Waiver and Its Impact
There are companies that exude that stubborn optimism that this plant needs to heal. I am proud to say I work for a company called Otter Waiver.
Otter makes digital signing and user management affordable to the outdoor industry’s small businesses and non-profit organizations. While many of you many do not think about the waste that paper waivers cause, it is a large problem that needs attention.
Let me shed some light on this problem. According to IntactForest.org, intact forest landscapes from 2000-2013 decline globally by 70,000 square kilometers per year (about the size of Costa Rica) for a total of 919,000 square kilometers. Tree density in primary forests varies from 50,000-100,000 trees per square km, the estimated number of trees cut down per year is around 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees cut down each year.
You see, the idea of making waivers digital can make an enormous impact. Not only Otter Waiver reduce the amount of cutting trees, but it also teams up with nonprofits to plant more trees to contribute to reforestation.
The latest partnership of Otter started with a nonprofit organization, One Tree Planted. Otter has pledged to plant a tree for every tree they save.
Putting the Coronavirus and Climate Change into Perspective
Ideas and actions like Otter Waiver are what we are ready for. We can see from this pandemic that one person does have the power to make a difference. With these recent actions toward slowing the spread of COVID 19 our plant has been healing.
Waters in Venice are clear due to less waste. It is a wake-up call that our actions have power. Whether that power has negative or positive consequences is up to us. Once the world comes back to some kind of order and those logging trucks start back up the world is going to start dying again.
Let us create companies like Otter Waiver that have an environmental impact at the forefront of their mission. Let us use the power we have to take care of the resources that have taken care of the human race since the beginning of time.
