Yesterday (Saturday, 28/3/09), from 8.30pm to 9.30pm, was Earth hour. Last year, about a billion people from approximately ninety countries switched off their lights for an hour to play their part in saving the Earth.
Yesterday, I took part in this event for the first time. My family and I huddled together in one room and switched off all the other lights. When any of us went out, we relied on torches as our source of light, for it was pitch dark outside. Despite the inconvenience, I was glad that we had switched off our lights for that one hour, for by doing that, we have contributed to the fight against Global Warming.
However, even if one billion people switched off their lights for an hour, it would only be equivalent to stopping China's emissions for a mere six seconds. That is a sad fact. Our never-ending need for energy is slowly but surely, destroying our planet's life. 2008 was the year of the frog as many realised the terrible danger amphibian species were in, not only from chrytid fungus but also from global warming.
We all share only one planet: Earth. It will require an international, transboundary effort (and also green technology) to reverse the damage done.
