Earth Hour, an international demonstration, is sponsored by the World Wildlife Fund. It is intended to be a call for action to ameliorate the effects of climate change, an opportunity to join in making a statement about your concerns. As the WWF puts it, the action sends a visual message that Americans (and people around the world) care.
Participants can be found in 115 countries and 6,000 cities. International landmarks slated to go dark include the Eiffel Tower, Hiroshima Peace Memorial, the Burj Khalifa (world's tallest building) in Dubai UAE, and the "Bird's Nest" stadium in China.
In the US, 26 states will turn off the lights on goverment buildings and in the governors' mansions. Such prominent U.S. landmarks as the Golden Gate Bridge, Mt. Rushmore, and Niagara Falls will participate. In New York City, the UN Headquarters, the Empire State Building, and all the marquees on Broadway theaters (as well as many other prominent buildings) will click off their lights for that one hour.
The results of this campaign may appear as a "wave of darkness" moving across the time zones. But that earthly black is actually a wave of enlightenment, a visible vote for good stewardship and a new way of life that works in rhythm with the interconnectedness of all.
There is much to be done; Earth Hour is only a symbolic act, which must be followed by immediate and far-reaching action at every level of society. The interesting aspect is to see how many, many people are stating, for this one hour, that they are ready for change.
* * *
To my regular readers: Apologies for the pause in posting -- the violent windstorm here in Connecticut left my house without electricity for a week , and me without regular use of a computer. I am changing my posting day to Wednesdays now, in anticipation of a number of weekend wedding engagements.
No comments:
Post a Comment