A list of ideas you can implement, no matter where you live!
8:30pm Saturday 27 March 2010
In 2007, more than two million Sydney businesses and households turned off their lights for one hour - Earth Hour - sending a powerful global message that it’s possible to take action on climate change.
Just one year later, Earth Hour reached more than 50 million people in 35 countries across 18 timezones, and the campaign shifted from a Sydney event to a global sustainability movement.
In India, we hope to make Earth Hour 2010 even bigger and better than last year. Besides Delhi & Mumbai , this year we are taking Earth Hour to Pune, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Bangaluru, Chennai and Kolkata, apart from several other cities where people will be encouraged to participate and turn-off the lights in their homes, offices and buildings. If you want to bring Earth Hour to your town or city on 27 March 2010 at 8:30pm, this will help you get started!
Your Goal
Get the most people, businesses and government involved in Earth Hour and get them to turn off their lights for one hour at 8:30pm on March 27, 2010.
Making Earth Hour happen
Building your team
A good team is one of the biggest success factors for making Earth Hour happen around the world. Put together a team of committed people and organisations to help plan how you can turn out the lights for one hour in your area.
Members of your Earth Hour Team could include your friends or schoolmates, members of your family or your neighbours, the local mayor or business leader, or your local school principal.
Pull together a team of people and organisations willing to put the time and effort into making Earth Hour happen and you’ll be ready to get started.
Spread the word about Earth Hour
To inspire yourself and those you speak to about Earth Hour, watch the Earth Hour video. This video will go a long way to inspiring you and those you speak to, to get involved in Earth Hour and to help take a stand against climate change.
Think about how you could spread the word about Earth Hour in your area, how can you encourage the most people and businesses to turn their lights of for one hour at 8:30pm on Saturday, 27 March, 2010? If you want to enlist the support of your friends and family, click here.
Thinking small can be big thinking
We’ve created a website to help you spread the word about Earth Hour. Register at www.earthhour.in and recruit your friends to the Earth Hour cause. Getting your friends and neighbourhood involved is the easiest way to be a part of Earth Hour and help make a difference to our planet.
Think big
Who in your town uses lots of power? First stop? The city. The city is one of the largest users of power in your area. Write to your mayor or present the Earth Hour idea at your local council. If you can get the city involved in turning off their non-essential lighting for Earth Hour (you can leave street lights on for safety), your town can make a huge difference.
Office buildings and big retail stores also use a lot of power. Write to the businesses and stores in your area and ask them to darken their buildings, neon signs, stores and restaurants for one hour for Earth Hour.
Ask your favourite restaurants to have a candle-lit dinner hour (using beeswax candles of course) and feature fresh “cold” dishes in the menu or use local products.
Write to your local newspaper or television channel and tell them what you’re doing - try and get some news coverage of what your town wants to do for Earth Hour and the planet…think big!
Be creative
As well as asking as many people and businesses as possible to turn off their lights in your city or town at 8:30 pm on 27 March 2010, think creatively about how to bring your friends and family together for the night.
Organise a “block party” in your neighbourhood with “in the dark” games and activities,
organise a movie or music night at someone’s house, look up at the stars, use the hour to talk about what you can do every day to save energy.
Think about the different ways to have fun with Earth Hour. And share those ideas with us.
What to do everyday
Turning off your lights for one hour at 8:30pm on 27 March, 2010 is the first part of getting involved in Earth Hour. Making a difference to the future of our planet by making energy savings every day is the second part.
When spreading the Earth Hour message, don’t forget to encourage your friends, family and workmates to turn off unused lights and appliances every day of the year.
Make it happen
Every town and city is unique and can bring its own special touch, identity and passion of its communities to create its own Earth Hour on 27 March 2010. But making Earth Hour happen is up to you! Whatever you can organise to help turn out the lights on 27 March – whether it’s a backyard barbeque or asking your local mayor to turn off the city’s non-essential lighting - will be a success. You can make Earth Hour happen if you work together.
Take the first step now! And sign up for Earth Hour!