Earth Hour began with the goal of “inspiring people to take action on climate change.” Initiated by the World Wildlife Fund Australia and the Sydney Morning Herald, the first Earth Hour took place in Sydney, Australia on March 31, 2007. The goal: get as many people as possible to turn off their lights for an hour, and lower power consumption by 5%.
“On March 31, 2007, 2.2 million people and 2,100 businesses turned off their lights for one hour,” the Earth Hour website proudly proclaims. This marked a reported decrease of 10.2% in Sydney’s energy use in that hour, “…the equivalent of taking 48,000 cars off the road for a year.”1
One might think that doing something as trivial as turning lights off for one hour would have no impact on the environment. Major cities, Chicago included, have reported significant usage reductions during last year’s event. If we all do that one trivial thing we can make a difference.
The first video linked here will show you what has been done and what is being done to “celebrate” dark skies. The second video linked here must be viewed through completion to get full appreciation.
Join me and several million people around the world and do your part. And don’t forget to tell friends and family.
1. Reprinted from the WWF website.
