Day 178: Earth Hour 8:30 pm Across the World

Today is a big day around the world. It’s been a big week. Twestival, World Water Day and now Earth Hour. If you missed the first two big world campaigns, don’t miss this one. It’s a time we can all give back to our planet and have a fun evening at the same time. We have our celebration planned as we will watch the Lions Gate Bridge lights go out at 8:30 pm right from our living room!

Lions Gate Bridge

Day 178: Give 178

Here is a great piece of history on Earth Hour taken from their site. In just a few short years it has become a world wide collaboration for climate change.

“Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million individuals and more than 2,000 businesses turned their lights off for one hour to take a stand against climate change. Only a year later and Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries/territories participating. Global landmarks such as the Sydney Harbour Bridge, CN Tower in Toronto, Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and Rome’s Colosseum, all stood in darkness, as symbols of hope for a cause that grows more urgent by the hour.

In March 2009, hundreds of millions of people took part in the third Earth Hour. Over 4000 cities in 88 countries/territories officially switched off to pledge their support for the planet, making Earth Hour 2009 the world’s largest global climate change initiative.

On Saturday 27 March, Earth Hour 2010 became the biggest Earth Hour ever. A record 128 countries and territories joined the global display of climate action. Iconic buildings and landmarks from Asia Pacific to Europe and Africa to the Americas switched off. People across the world from all walks of life turned off their lights and came together in celebration and contemplation of the one thing we all have in common – our planet.

Earth Hour 2011 will take place on Saturday 26 March at 8.30PM (local time). This Earth Hour we want you to go beyond the hour, so after the lights go back on think about what else you can do to make a difference. Together our actions add up.”

I thought this event was a great opportunity to host my friends and family and celebrate together. I sent out a dinner invitation and asked everyone to participate. Each person is to bring one organic local dish (encouraging people to help the planet by using organic local products), one organic bottle of wine and a candle. We are going to celebrate Earth Hour by working as a community and sharing some of our favourite foods.

The exciting part of the evening will be when the lights go out on Lions Gate Bridge. We will all gather out on our deck with our candles in hand to watch this amazing scene. We also get a full view of downtown Vancouver so I am hoping everyone has this day booked so the lights across the city will dim.

Make the commitment today. You can go to The Canadian World Wild Life Foundation site and pledge. I even marked our event on their cross Canada campaign. It’s not what we can’t do for our planet but what we can do to make a difference. Be part of that difference today!

Time Commitment: 3 hours to shop and prepare for the dinner party

Cost: $50