On Saturday, March 27, 8:30 p.m. local time, the second official Earth Hour could 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 reffers to as 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
Earth Hour’s call to action is the least we can do in the most basic sense of the word. Being a part of Earth Hour doesn’t mean we need to actually be responsible for the environment by altering our lives. All that is needed is for us to turn off the lights for an hour.
Shop, donate, borrow money
It costs nothing to take part in in Earth Hour; however, those who hope that buying more merchandise will help stop climate change can look for Earth Hour Gear on the official web site. Also, if you think it will help the environment, you might donate on their website cash directly to Earth Hour. 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.
A nutshell of Climate Change
The Earth Hour website suggests that effects of climate change are found in all of the US. Alaska’s climate has warmed twice as fast as the mainland United States. Glaciers are retreating when permafrost is thawing, sea ice is reducing, and snowmelt is earlier in the spring. Within the Northwest, Water supplies are being strained when erosion is increasing because winters are wetter when summers are dryer. In the Southwest, water supplies are becoming increasingly scarce and droughts are a substantial concern.
In the Midwest, lake ice is reduced when downpours are twice as frequent as they were 100 years ago. The Northeast has less snow and additional rain. Within the Southeast there are a lot more hurricanes, higher winds, more storm surges, increased air temperatures, and greater rainfall. On the islands and coastlines, where there are 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 real stance doesn’t have to be hard
It is good to take a position on climate change, but responsibility for the problem is going to take more than an annual hour-long blackout. Taking responsibility, on the other hand, doesn’t have to entail living in a teepee without electric power or running water.
You may try eating foods that use less fossil energy to create, purchase less wasteful products, or even make an effort to ride a bike every so often instead of driving.There is no reason why you can’t turn off your lights for an hour while also making other real changes; however, it is good to bear in mind change won’t be as easy as the flip of a switch.
