There is strength in numbers.
I remember when we were kids and my brothers and I would get into squabbles, my Dad would take a bamboo skewer and say, “This is what it is like to be ONE person”. He would then take a handful of bamboo skewers and bunch them all together and try to snap them in half. It could not be done — well, at least not easily. “This is what it’s like when you are together. One family. It is harder to snap in half if you work together as a team”. My Dad is a wise man.
I used to think I could save the world. Me. A thirteen year old kid, on a mission to save the planet from pollution, ozone depletion, deforestation, etc. I wanted to save wildlife — all the flora and fauna. I wanted to preserve ecosystems.
Then I realized I could not do it alone.
There is truth to being stronger and affecting change when you have numerous people with similar goals and beliefs and who support a cause together.
Image Source: earthhour.org
Join millions of people across the world who will switch lights off for Earth Hour. Earth Hour is an hour on 29 March at 8:30 pm – to raise awareness for the planet.
Earth Hour excerpt from Wikipedia:
Earth Hour is a worldwide movement for the planet organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Earth Hour engages a massive mainstream community on a broad range of environmental issues. It was famously started as a lights-off event in Sydney, Australia in 2007. Since then it has grown to engage more than 7000 cities and towns worldwide, and the one-hour event continues to remain the key driver of the now larger movement. The event is held worldwide and held towards the end of March annually, encouraging individuals, communities, households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights for one hour as a symbol for their commitment to the planet.
Some Earth Hour Activities for Families
- Go stargazing! Identify the constellations! With all the lights turned off, it’s prime time for viewing the night sky! You may even spot a few shooting stars! Make a wish!
- Talk about the importance of conserving energy. Discuss how every effort has an impact on the planet, regardless how little. Talk about how your family can tread lighter on the Earth.
- Tell stories! Earth Hour is a great time to have some quality family time! Kids love hearing stories about when their parents and grandparents were growing up!
- Go for a moonlight walk! If you live in the country/a rural environment, go for a walk and listen for wildlife! You’ll likely hear noises you wouldn’t expect to hear or wouldn’t have otherwise heard if you had been inside your house watching TV or on the computer!
- Have a candlelight dinner!
- Go camping in your living room! Pull out the sleeping bags and camp out on the floor!
- Sing your favourite songs! *sigh* I know what my five year old daughter will be singing! Anyone else have a kid who has memorized the entire Frozen soundtrack?
- Invite friends over and play games by candlelight/flashlight! Games Night is a fun way to spend the hour!
Turning off the lights for the hour on Earth Hour is just the beginning. Since we began participating in Earth Hour a few years ago, we’ve started “living by candlelight”. We don’t really live by candlelight (just the expression), but we do turn off non-essential lights when not in use, lower the thermostat, practice a less wasteful lifestyle, and reduce/reuse/recycle in order to tread as lightly on the Earth as possible.
Don’t forget! Turn off your lights March 29, from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. “Unplug your TV, your computer, your DVD player – or if you’ve been following these tips, just flick off the power bar you have them all plugged into. Head outside and check out the skyline, by foot – not car.”
We don’t participate but should start. We try our best all year round, but this would still be an impactful activity.
We participated.. my children are a little older. We spent the hour talking… 🙂