Your Guide to Earth Hour
A lot of planning goes into making sure cities don't lose their nighttime lighting, but on March 28th millions in people in hundreds of cities across America will do just that, and they'll be flipping those switches for a reason: Earth Hour. Now in its third year, Earth Hour is the result of a brainstorming session at WWF Australia on how to incite interest in climate change and produce positive action. It started relatively small, focused in Sydney in 2007, with about 2 million residents participating. The next year, Earth Hour had spread to more than 370 cities and towns across the globe with more than 50 million people taking part. With numbers like that, you may already be aware of Earth Hour--and possibly even have been involved--but this year's goals for the hour of power are set even higher to match increasingly rising stakes. Want to know more? Read on.
Top 3 Green Tips
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Top 3 Green Tips
1. A Dark Past
Because Earth Hour can technically be designated a bit of a by-choice blackout, some get the idea that the goal is to reduce energy consumption during an hour-long period by shutting off the lights. While this is a perk of Earth Hour, however, it's not the real goal (sometimes a city's daily wattage will be seriously reduced for that day, sometimes not). The real goal is to increase awareness about climate change and allow citizens across the world a chance to show everyone that the issue is important to them. Earth Hour sends a very clear--albeit dark--message.
It began in Australia in 2004, as the brainchild of WWF Australia, who was trying to come up with creative ways to take the scientific facts they were finding about the dangers of climate change into the mainstream. By 2005 the idea was beginning to take shape, cemented in educating with hope, not fear, and designed to reassure Australian citizens that every person can affect the outcome of our planet. Marketers knew they wanted to flip switches for a darkout--the project even had a working title of "The Big Flick"--but hadn't decided exactly what the campaign would be and how it would be executed. A year later (in 2006), as WWF Australia worked hard on bringing their plan to fruition, another big flick debuted--Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth--and millions of minds were alerted to the crisis of climate change. With extra attention on the issue, there seemed no better time to act and, on March 31st, 2007, 2.2 million Syndney residents and 2,100 Sydney businesses turned off their lights for one hour.
Following the success of the inaugural Earth Hour, plans were made to take the event all over the nation, but extremely high levels of international interest spread it from across Australia to across the world. More than 35 countries would take place and more than 50 million individuals. International landmarks like the Golden Gate Bridge, the Colisseum and the Opera House took part,too, and even Google switched their white home page to black to remind people to participate.
This year, Earth Hour is even more important than ever. It's a chance for citizens of countries around the world to join together and vote on a serious issue--an unheard of opportunity. And the voting form couldn't be easier; switch your lights off on March 28th from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. (local to your area) and you're voting for the earth. Leave them on and you're voting for global warming. WWF is hoping that 1 billion will cast a vote for Earth, and they will present the "election results" at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, where world leaders will be replacing the Kyoto Protocol, the current international environmental treaty. By participating in Earth Hour 2009, you're getting a chance to speak to governments worldwide on what matters to you, without ever saying a word.
2. It's Time to Flip Your Switch
Now that you know what Earth Hour is all about, it's time get involved! So how do you do it? The most important thing is turning off your non-essentials lights for the hour (that is, all the lights that wouldn't be dangerous to shut off) and while you're at it, why not unplug appliances too. While that's the minimum activity required, there's plenty more you can do and most of it's easy and fun.
You can start right now and sign up for Earth Hour e-mails, which will offer up tips on reducing your carbon footprint (what Earth Hour is really about) and send you reminders as the big day draws near, just in case it slips your mind. Or sign up for GiverSign and place the Earth Hour message at the end of your e-mails and blogs or on your social networking profiles.
If you're ready to put more effort into Earth Hour, gather a team of participants and set out to promote the event. If you're city officials aren't involved, ask them to join. If you're eating dinner at your favorite restaurants, mention it to the manager. Take matters into your own hands and plan events for your friends, family and neighbors to take part in--maybe a block party or a beeswax-candlelit organic wine tasting. Just because its dark doesn't mean you have call it a night. In fact, many previous Earth Hour participants say they found themselves enjoying the lights off long after the hour was up.
By going to the Earth Hour homepage and entering in your city, you can choose an event to attend that's already happening in your area, but if your city's participating, one of the easiest--and most inspiring--things you can do is find an observation point where you'll be able to look over the city and watch your fellow citizens join you in the fight against global warming. It may very well be the only time you see your city fade to black (without any of the worries that go along with traditional power outages).
3. How to Make it More Than an Hour
It's great to take part in Earth Hour and we applaud everyone who participates, but if we want to see a real difference in the way we're headed environmentally, people have to begin putting energy-reduction practices into use in their everyday lives. After all, that's what Earth Hour is here to teach us; that the planet needs us to change the way we operate and that we each have the ability to make a difference.
You don't have to jump right in to solar panels and living off-the-grid; start small. Stock up on power strips--they're won't break the bank--and plug in all your appliances that spend time on standby. Turning off the power strip at the end of daily use will nix vampire power (that energy drain that happens when certain electronic items are off but still running) and will be easier to remember than unplugging individual items. Swap out any incandescent light bulbs in your home with compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs), starting, if you can't do everything at once, with light bulbs that are on frequently and for long periods--maybe the living room, kitchen and office. You can even use the lights out time during Earth Hour to switch out bulbs by flashlight (a solar-powered one, perhaps?).
On a bigger scale, try to make more active efforts to thwart your big energy consumers. Opt out of owning a giant TV. Caulk any gaps near doors and windows where your hot air might be escaping. Turn down the thermostat a degree (or a few) and stock up on throw blankets, cozy sweaters and thick socks instead. Or what about making Earth Hour more than a once-a-year activity? Could you set aside one powerless hour a week where you eat dinner or take a bath by candlelight? Maybe it's Earth Hour on a smaller scale and you turn off lights and electronics in all but one room and gather as a group for an activity in that room.
Whatever you do, use Earth Hour as a chance to remind yourself--and those around you--that climate change is a real problem, needing real action and that we all have a role to play in its solution. Lights out, America!
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