Earth Hour is Coming!
By Julie A. Baylor, CHA, LEED GA
On March 26th at 8:30 p.m. local time, millions of people around the world will turn off their lights for one hour in a global demonstration to draw attention to energy conservation and climate change. Should you and your business participate? To help you decide, here are some frequently asked questions with answers:
WHAT IS EARTH HOUR?
Earth Hour is a global grass-roots movement encouraging individuals, businesses and governments around the world to take positive actions for the environment, and celebrating their commitment to the planet by switching off their lights for one designated hour.
WHAT IS THE GOAL OF EARTH HOUR?
Earth Hour 2011 aims to display the actions that people, businesses and governments world-wide are taking to reduce their environmental impact. The main goal of Earth Hour is to increase awareness for the need for energy conservation and communicate a message to the world that solutions to the world’s environmental challenges are possible if we work on them together – together our actions add up!
WHAT DOES MY PARTICIPATION MEAN?
When individuals, businesses and governments participate in Earth Hour, they are demonstrating a commitment to strive for environmental solutions through their actions. Collectively, Earth Hour is a platform to showcase to the world what measures we can take to reduce our environmental impact.
HOW DO I PARTICIPATE?
Participation is easy – simply turn out non-essential lights for one hour!
For more information on how businesses can participate, the Earth Hour website provides a “How To” page with guides on the best ways to participate. You’ll find great ideas and instructions, including templates for letters to customers and employees.
Remember - Earth Hour 2011 takes place this Saturday, March 26th at 8:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. local time. After that, we need to go Beyond The Hour and consider more ways that we can take action to benefit the environment.