Posted by Trevor Smith on March 29th, 2012
Earth Hour
Earth Hour is this Saturday, March 31st, from 8:30-9:30 p.m. Events are taking place all across our province, our country, our planet. The people at Green Cricket were asked what their plans for Earth Hour were, and here are some of their responses:
Getting the family together for some nice after dinner conversation, with dessert (preferably something chocolate).
Enjoying a peaceful run with the lights in the city dimmed.
Having a living room campout and playing Monopoly with my kids by the light of our windup lantern.
Earth Hour (http://www.earthhour.org/) is a planet wide event that brings awareness to climate change. It was started in Sydney, Australia in 2007 as an event to show that everybody can have an effect on climate change. Earth Hour went international the next year with Toronto signing up and then quick expansion to around 135 countries. Brought to the world by the World Wildlife Fund and symbolized by 60+ which represents the sixty minutes in the hour PLUS continuing to make a difference every day.
The amazing response to Earth Hour shows that the citizens of planet Earth care about the anthropomorphic causes of climate change and want to do something about it. This event acts as a stepping stone to make people more aware of what they can do to counteract climate change. As simple as turning the lights off for an hour is, it shows that everybody can have an impact through small lifestyle changes. Lowering the temperature on your thermostat in the winter by a degree or two, walking or riding to work or using mass transit and making sure you turn your lights off are just a few of the ways we can help save our planet.
Some cities, such as Toronto (in their Distillery District), have events to commemorate Earth Hour that include performances, a countdown and an art show. Events such as these bring an inclusive feel to Earth Hour and don’t leave you sitting home in the dark.
Get involved in Earth Hour and try to expand it to your daily thoughts and actions.
