Philadelphia will join 2,848 cities in 84 countries on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. for Earth Hour 2009. The World Wildlife Fund, a global conservation group, is asking governments, businesses, and individuals around the world to demonstrate their commitment to finding solutions to global warming by turning off their lights for one hour. Landmarks around the world from New York City’s Empire State Building to the Sphinx and Great Pyramids in Egypt will go dark to call attention to climate change. Participating is as easy as citizen science projects get – just turn off your light switches for one hour! (If you’re thinking of switching to candles to save carbons, this report suggests otherwise.)
The goal of the World Wildlife Fund is to have one billion people worldwide vote for energy conservation by turning off their lights. These votes will be presented to world leaders convening at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP15) held in Copenhagen in December 2009.
I plan to spend my vote eating a delicious dinner cooked by my fiance…by candlelight! Families with kids could read a ghost story by flashlight or make shadow puppets! Be creative, and feel free to post your Earth Hour activities in the comments section of this post.
Statistics from previous years: In 2007, more than two million homes and businesses participated in Sydney, Australia. By 2008, that number increased to 50 million homes and businesses around the globe.
> Topics: conservation of energy, climate change, global warming
> Location: your home
> Duration: 1 hour
> Cost: Free, not to mention seeing a small decrease your electric bill!
> Gear: A light switch
> Level of Difficulty: REALLY easy