I’m participating in Earth Hour this evening. What is it? It’s a global event, in which participants turn off their lights between 8:30 and 9:30 pm local time. It started in Sydney, Australia in 2007, and became a worldwide event in 2008. I think the official video explains it better than I could ever hope to:
I sort of heard about Earth Hour last year, but didn’t participate myself. 8:30 is an inconvenient time for us, because we’re often reading stories, brushing teeth, and rushing to get the little ones to bed. It seemed like too much of a hassle, so I passed. I also reasoned that turning off my lights for one hour would hardly make a difference. Really, I just didn’t want to be bothered and so I made excuses to justify my choice.
I am not the only cynic, either. This year I’ve seen article after article about the futility of Earth Hour, how switching off your lights briefly makes no difference in the grand scheme of things. I’ve read about how standard paraffin candles are highly toxic and polluting. I’ve even heard arguments that people will participate in Earth Hour and then rest on their laurels, ignoring more positive actions they could take.
I don’t honestly believe that switching off my lights for an hour will reduce climate change. And the information about candles is good to know, I will seek out better alternatives. But I also don’t believe that these sorts of events don’t matter, or that they actually make the problem worse. I think that people who participate in Earth Hour are more likely to seek out other positive changes than stop recycling because they feel satisfied they’ve already done their bit. That’s how I’m approaching it myself, anyway.
Maybe Earth Hour is little more than a feel-good PR campaign. But does that make it bad or totally useless? Feel good PR campaigns can raise awareness, educate, and inspire. How did you first learn about recycling, or compact fluorescent lightbulbs? A lot of the information we get comes from feel-good PR campaigns. A lot of the information that journalists get comes from PR campaigns, too. What better way is there to circulate ideas and incite change?
I like the idea of Earth Hour because it represents people coming together in a grass-roots fashion, expressing their shared concerns and values. As a mom I also think special events like this can be great teaching tools for kids. But most of all I like the idea of unplugging. I would actually like to do it on a regular basis, but haven’t worked it out yet. Turn off the lights, the computers, the music, the noise, and just be. Sit in the flickering (beeswax) candle light and talk. Share. Take a step back.
One of the real problems we face is how plugged-in we are, how fast-paced we have allowed our lives to become. And it all fuels the fire of climate change. We need to go, do, move, move, move. We don’t have time to cook or grow food or knit a sweater. We need this car and that patio set and those boots. On and on it goes. It’s all bit crazy-making and overwhelming, but we (and I include myself here) have a hard time stepping back and evaluating what we’re doing and why.
So I will turn off the lights for an hour tonight. And then maybe we’ll try a whole evening, or a monthly event. Summer’s coming and the days are getting longer, leaving the lights off inside and heading outdoors may be just the ticket. Evenings in the back yard with the kids and the wading pool, or visiting our local playground. Unplugging, and stepping off the mad carousel of our daily lives. That’s what I’m going for, won’t you join me?
Thank you for reminding me Amber. We are away for the weekend, and I totally forgot that tonight was the night!
I agree that, in the larger scheme, it may accomplish little. However, I like the thought that in some small way I am a part of people all over the world coming together, one person or household at a time… climbing every mountain begins with a single, small step. I know not every country or every person will participate but many will and that’s a first step.
We accidentally observed Earth Hour last year when the little dude fell asleep early and we collapsed shortly after. This year, we’ll be attending a get-together for a friend who is undergoing chemo – it wasn’t an option for his wife to move the date because his time is tightly scheduled with treatment – but I’m going to try to do some extra recycling/cleaning type things this weekend instead.
Stepping off the daily track now and again, as you say, is a good thing.
We had a great Earth Hour last year. We turned off the lights and sat around with the kids telling jokes and stories. Eve did start out saying “Earth Hour is so cool!” and end up saying “I hate Earth Hour, I want to watch something,” but baby steps, right? This year we were unavoidably driving between our hockey tournament in Kingston and our hotel room in Belleville. But we didn’t use the little dvd player. Okay, micro-baby-steps. At least I’m at the point where I’m not forgetting my reusable grocery bags every time I go to the store.