So What is Earth Hour?

Nicole Lee

10N

Earth Hour 2011 is just around the corner! This year's Earth Hour will take place on 26th of March from 8.30pm to 9.30pm, local time. Location? AT your own house!

For those who haven't heard of Earth Hour or participated in Earth Hour before, you'll have your chance to do so in the annual event this year. In just three years, what started as a simple act in Sydney has become a global event, or some say, celebration which we all, men and women, boys and girls, participate in. With more than 128 countries, 4616 cities and towns, and approximately 1.3 billion people participating in this nationwide event, Earth Hour raises awareness about global warming and climate change.

Arguably, climate change is one of the pressing problems in our fast-paced society. So naturally, the ultimate million-dollar question is how to stop climate change, in which its adverse effects will in a way or another eventually wipe out life on Earth.

This is a symbolic event to make people environmentally aware of Earth's inevitable fate if we continue to harness Earth's resources excessively. We burn fossil fuels, we cut down forests, we pollute water, and we thin the ozone layer: if we selfishly insist to continue to do all these excessively, we will eventually lose our home.

The best thing of Earth Hour is that you don't need to be an environment-expert: you just need to turn off your lights and electrical appliances.

You'll never know how much electricity will you cut down by just switching off all electrical appliances in your household or office; you'll never know how much your insignificant little act will help in slowing down climate change; you'll never know how the simple flick of switch to 'off' when done globally can actually help build a sustainable future for our future generations.

But you can, if you turn off your lights on 26th March. Soak yourself in the magical night where we can make a change and heal Mother Earth. Together, we can slow down climate change. Together, we can make a difference. The power is in your hands!

Switch Off The Lights, Let Mother Earth Rest, Save Her Energy.

So where did it all begin?

Earth hour was first developed in 2007 in Sydney, Australia. The WWF (World Wide Federation) decided to make a global change.  Their view was "a change today will lead to a better tomorrow". 2.2 million people, and more than 2000 businesses, turned off their lights to take a stand against climate change.

What's changed?

One year later, Earth Hour had become a global phenomenon. Landmarks all over the world made an effort to turn off their lights: the CN tower, Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Burj-al-arab and a lot more including our very own KL Towers!

Big Ben before and after the Earth Hour.

 

Toronto before and after the Earth Hour.

The 2008 Earth Hour saved 900 megawatts of electricty.  In 2009 the number of participants rose to 88 countries and 4159 cities and by 2010 a staggering 121 countries joined the Earth Hour crusade! 

Why do we need to get involved?

If we continue to destroy the Earth, our world will eventually die out. We need to make our future sustainable, which means our preserving our environment for future generations to enjoy, without doing harm to our precious planet. 

So Malaysia, join Nexus International School, turn off the lights to turn on a better future on Saturday 26th of March at 8:30pm - 9:30pm. Otherwise we'll send Darth Vader after you!

Written by: CJ, Danny, Owen, You Zhen, Olivia, Haniza and Zhermaine