Date: Saturday, January 16th 2016

Participants (from 14 countries):

Host: Rick

Moderator: Rick

Teams

Panel PRO (Team A): Suren, Johny, Masato, Riya

Panel CON (Team B): Amine, Rick,

Audience (Team C): Taregh, Seif, Lala, Liu, Behnam, Rojhano, Ganaa, Boboty, Azamu, J.A., Noorola, Adnan, Grace

Panel PRO summary:

It doesn’t matter how much energy we save, eventually it will run out.
It’s like living in an isolated island with just one basket of fruits to eat; it won’t matter how much you try to save the food, eventually, one day, it will finish. But if you treat a tree in such a way that can produce fruits every day, you will have food to eat for the rest of your life.
It’s worthwhile to invest our efforts, our resources to identify renewable energy resources because traditional energy resources such as petrol, coal and fossil fuel are finite, and if we don’t start working on developing alternative energy sources, it may be too late once it happens.
Developing new energy sources will represent an increase of the economy. With the coming of new technologies, new job positions, new technology commercial industries and high income levels for people will occur.
It also represents new opportunities for investors to invest in new companies that have a good future in the green energy business.
Environment pollution is a big issue which could lessen with the developing green energy sources.
Eco-friendly source of energy will have a huge positive effect on the planet, including minimizing global warming and the greenhouse effect.
In order to protect this world, which is the only place we have for living at this moment, t's essential to start developing green energy sources and technology.
Developing new sources of energy can take the humanity to the very outer space. To become a much more capable and successful species. We could even transcend from primitive to advance species thanks to our capability to take something limited and transform it into something eternal.
Developing renewable resources of energy opens up new opportunities for people in terms of job employment; because engineers, scientists, geologists, biologists, architects, designers, doctors, and even the military personnel are going to be needed.

Panel CON summary:

It’s too costly to develop green energy.
As individuals, conservation is something we can take action on today.
Energy conservation is something that is tied to the use of green technology, such as the way some buildings are built, the way some cars are constructed to make them more energy efficient.
In some countries, the way houses are built reduces energy consumption up to 90%.
If we make use of the green technology available today, we can do a lot more in the near term to conserve energy as individuals than you can with renewable resources.
Energy conservation also gives people opportunity in terms of job employment; because people will be interested in building houses that can be energy efficient.
It also gives investors opportunities to invest in firms that build houses which can conserve energy.
Both are important, but as individuals, what we can do today is not to find new solar resource (for instance), we can do is to reduce the electricity we use in our house, we can cut down on how often we drive our car and some other acts can significantly reduce the demand on energy resources.
We as individuals can make a difference in energy conservation because it’s something we can do today and let government institutions and private industry put emphasis on renewable resources.
Renewable energy is the way of the future but that needs to be coupled with learning energy conservation.
New technology always cost a lot and even if it’s available, people may find difficult to afford it and it’s easier to just conserve energy than to pay for new technology.
Educating people, to put emphasis on conserving energy will have a much more immediate impact in the near term.

Audience vote:

Behnam voted for the team C
Noorola voted for the team A
Ganaa voted for the team A
Lala voted for the team B
Taregh voted for the team B

It was a tie. Thanks everyone for participating. Below are the links to listen to this debate.

Listen online:

Download:

Renewable Energy | Recording file | January 16th 2016

For people who did not join the live discussion, feel free to contribute the ideas in the comment blanks below.