On Saturday, March 27, 8:30 p.m. local time, the second official Earth Hour will be observed. According to the official website for earth hour, as people all around the world turn out their lights during a scheduled hour, a blackout “will once again cascade around the globe, from New Zealand to Hawaii” The Los Angeles Times dubs Earth Hour “the world’s largest global climate change initiative.” Earth Hour, says the Times, is a “global call to action . . . a call to stand up and take responsibility.”
Earth Hour is easy
In the most basic sense, Earth hour’s call to action is the least we can do. Being a part of Earth Hour doesn’t mean we have to change our lives by actually being responsible for the environment. All we have to do is shut off the lights for an hour.
Shop, donate, borrow money
It costs nothing to participate in Earth Hour; however, those who hope that buying a lot more merchandise will help stop climate change can shop for Earth Hour Gear on the official web site. Those who believe it may make better environmental sense to donate money directly to Earth Hour can do that on the internet, too. At the time of this writing, Earth Hour Gear was not yet available, but donations can be made now, so it’s not too early to fill out a personal loan application if you need a loan to do your part for Earth Hour.
Climate Change in a simple form
According to the Earth Hour web site, the effects of climate change are being felt throughout the United States. Alaska has warmed two times as fast as the rest of the United States. Glaciers are retreating when permafrost is thawing, sea ice is reducing, and snowmelt is earlier in the spring. In the Northwest, Water supplies are being strained when erosion is escalating because winters are wetter when summers are dryer. In the Southwest, water supplies are becoming increasingly scarce and droughts are a significant concern.
In the Midwest, heavy downpours are now twice as regular as they were 100 years ago and lake ice is reduced. The Northeast has less snow and more rain. The Southeast has more hurricanes, increased air temperatures, higher winds, greater rainfall, and additional storm surges. On the islands and coastlines, where there are a lot more sensitive areas to climate change, wetlands are drowning, the man-made environment is threatened, shorelines are eroding, and sea levels are rising.
Taking a stance isn’t always too hard
It makes sense to take a stance about global climate change, but taking responsibility for the problem calls for a lot more than an annual hour-long blackout ritual. Taking a stance also doesn’t mean residing in a teepee with no running water or electricity.
One might ride a bike rather than driving a few of times, purchase less wasteful products, or eat things that will use less fossil energy to produce.There is no rationale why you can’t participate in Earth Hour when also making real changes; the change will regrettably never be as easy as flipping a switch.
