The Ongoing Debate

Assignment: Journal regarding the differences between preservation and conservation.

Wyoming Preservation Corps doesn't exactly roll of the tongue.  The idea of a preservation corps makes me giggle.  What would such a thing even mean? Momentarily, I will entertain the concept as the most ultimate preservationist would.  Maybe we would all sit around behind desks as assignments were handed to us.  I can just picture Tim and Kendall giving orders ..."Go out and meet with this agency.  They will have you fence off coordinates x,y through x,y. Oh yea and that will be barbed wire you put up.  Suckers couldn't even sneak in if they tried"  But really, could such a deep green ecological concept be any more unrealistic? 

Have you ever asked yourself, 'if I wasn't here to appreciate these spaces and species, would they appreciate themself?' 'Is there inherent value in land sans human input?'

In my mind the answer is a resounding yes.  Every form, plant or animal, serves a function in the system of life.  I have no doubt that life, in whatever forms or through whoevers eyes, bears an importance with or without me to appreciate it.  From my humble perspective though, the concept of preservation could only work in a world of an extraordinarily small population.  In other words, preservation is only reasonable for a few dreamers out there. 

And I am not one of them.  The realities of the world we live in are without a doubt startling.  With a population that is close to topping 7 billion, I couldn't bear to say that any new life does not deserve access to any particular space.  I do belive in my civic duty to contribute towards maintaining the spaces that we do have left for future generations of plants and animals(yes, we too are animals) to continue their functionality in the giant earth system.  Which is why I've found myself here working for the appropriately named Wyoming Conservation Corps.  Because I know that development of energy and other natural resources is part of a better future, but I also know that the reclamation of those spaces after development will help us bide the time until more creative and less impactful solutions are available. 

In my opionion, preservation should always remain on our horizon for reference, but conservation is as close as we can get to finding harmony with land for the present.