As a senior environmental studies major, I have developed more than my fair share of skepticism. It may be impossible to think about environmental issues and engage actively in discussions concerning the environment, day after day after day, without feeling the weight of the wide variety and scale of the challenges that face us. We are living in a society where it is perfectly acceptable to pretend that politics, economics or religion are the same as science; where the needs of international corporations usurp the needs of people and natural systems and where the health of the market economy is a higher priority than human and environmental health. In a setting like this, promoting environmental issues feels like a herculean task. Ushering in substantial positive change for the environment sometimes seems entirely outside of the realm of possibility.

Every once in a while, however, I am given a reminder of why I have chosen environmental studies as my major and why I have chosen to dedicate so much of my mental capacity to these issues that face us. Even though we don’t actually have a wind turbine yet, I still can’t help feeling hopeful. The College doesn’t have legal permission to put one up yet, and the Board obviously won’t approve the purchase of a wind turbine that we can’t legally erect. However, the Board’s decision to allow the administration to seek a variance to the county ordinance standing in our way is enough to please me, for now.

The magnitude of this decision by the Board is the reason that it makes me so very happy. I feel like we have seen a lot of very positive changes at our school since I enrolled here just over three years ago. Things like GustieWare and the opening of the Johnson Center for Environmental Innovation have been unambiguous signs of forward motion on campus. Of these and other changes, however, the wind turbine would be the most obvious. People may disagree about exactly all the different things a wind turbine could be to Gustavus, but no one can deny that it will be visible. Gustavus would be making a palpable, conclusive statement about sustainability.

But just because a definitive step toward bringing a wind turbine to campus has been made doesn’t mean that everyone is on the wagon. Valid concerns have been brought forward against the raising of a wind turbine on our campus.

This is not unique to Gustavus; most renewable energy projects are far from simple, and are not brought about by effortless, unanimous decisions. Many of these misgivings are justifiable and are not easy to answer. These questions will have to be addressed carefully and thoughtfully by administrators at Gustavus if we manage to move forward on this project, just as they will have to be addressed for any other renewable energy projects. However, I believe that some of them are nothing more than excuses made by people who, for whatever reason, are opposed to renewable energy and are running out of ammunition.

There are two arguments against renewable energy in particular I really struggle with. The first is that the technology simply isn’t developed enough. Many people argue that we should not build sources of renewable energy until the technology is as affordable and reliable as fossil fuels. The second is that one type of renewable energy, or according to some estimates many different types combined, could never meet the demand for energy that we have developed on our diet of fossil fuels.

While it may be true that fossil fuels are more desirable than renewable energy in many ways, my problem with both of these arguments is their inherent ignorance of the true nature of fossil fuels. I cannot deny the fact that fossil fuels are cheap, reliable and relatively easy to use. The fact that they are so easy, however, belies the fact that they are simply too good to be true. We will not have fossil fuels forever.

We are withdrawing from an energy “bank account” faster than the rate that the planet is making deposits. We are making withdrawals with no thought of what will happen when our balance reaches zero. Before we know it, not only we will not have cheap, easy, reliable energy, we may have absolutely no energy supply at all.

The hard truth is that we have put ourselves in quite a pickle. At a local, state, national and global level we will, probably sooner rather than later, be facing unprecedented change. If we choose to ignore this need to alter the ways that we create and use energy, before we know it, the decision will be made for us. Whether we decide to embrace this impending transformation and do all we can to usher it in, or whether we choose to let it happen to us while we are looking the other way could make all the difference for our quality of life in the future. It is certain that the world will never be the same. The only variable is if we will decide to make some of this change happen on our terms.

The wind turbine gives me hope that maybe, just maybe, there are some people out there in positions of power who get it. The wind turbine is not going to be cheap or easy, and it is likely that wind power is never going to satisfy 100 percent of Gustavus’ energy needs. But we are still working to purchase one, despite these imperfections. By investing in a turbine, some of our money is going to make this technology more affordable, and we are paving the way for a new way of thinking about energy. I believe that the wind turbine will be a notable sign that members of the Gustavus community are not blind to the role that we can play in easing the pain of our impending energy transition.

We can’t rely anymore on unilateral solutions that we pursue simply because they are cheap and easy. We have to come to terms with the fact that everyone will be facing these changes together, and everyone will have to bear some of the responsibility if we are going to proactively deal with them. I look forward to the day that Gustavus has a wind turbine above the campus, serving as both a power generator and a symbol that our campus is striving to be a part of the solution.