April 14, 2008

Ollie///Beauty is trying to save the earth!

As most of us internet users would have realised on 29th March 2008, Google lights turned out and for the whole 24 hours the page was black.

What was this in aid of? Earth Hour

"It started with a question: How can we inspire people to take action on climate change?

The answer: Ask the people of Sydney to turn off their lights for one hour.

On 31 March 2007, 2.2 million people and 2100 Sydney businesses turned off their lights for one hour - Earth Hour. If the greenhouse reduction achieved in the Sydney CBD during Earth Hour was sustained for a year, it would be equivalent to taking 48,616 cars off the road for a year.

With Sydney icons like the Harbour Bridge and Opera House turning their lights off, and unique events such as weddings by candlelight, the world took notice. Inspired by the collective effort of millions of Sydneysiders, many major global cities joined Earth Hour in 2008, turning a symbolic event into a global movement."


The event has been dubbed "a new age tooth fairy delusion" by skeptics, yet with over four million people together in just a Facebook group, there is certainly nothing that can be said to get these people down.
What turned out as a relatively small idea in 2007 became a global phenomenon in 2008 and all in aid of saving the planet from global warming. I've seen the news footage, the weather is changing... I've seen the documentaries (believe me, I've had enough Al Gore for now!) and clearly something drastic has to be done but if each person carries around with them the attitude, I am just one person, my contribution won't change much then the answer is no... We will get no where but if people ask, what can I do? What small thing can I change each day will then set of a greater chain of events and before we know it, the difference will be made.
This is a global thing, it's not country vs. country or culture vs. culture but the coming together of everything to realise that this planet will not be here forever and if we persist in destroying the time we have left then what of the future?
And to be honest this is the beautiful thing- communities coming together in recognition of the problem and together coming to a solution that will not only help themselves but others and not only their generations but future ones to come.
Already plans are being made for an even bigger Earth Hour 2009, what can you do?

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