The third annual Earth Hour is this week, Saturday March 27 at 8:30 (your local time). Initiated by the World Wildlife Fund, Earth Hour is a global event designed to promote awareness of the ever growing concern about climate change.

Is Earth Hour An Effective Movement?

From the website:

On Earth Hour hundreds of millions of people around the world will come together to call for action on climate change by doing something quite simple—turning off their lights for one hour. The movement symbolizes that by working together, each of us can make a positive impact in this fight, protecting our future and that of future generations.

Many have reservations regarding the symbolic nature of the event and it’s timing. Advocates of Earth Hour feel that even though the gesture is largely symbolic, the awareness it spreads can lead to behavioral changes. Skeptics question whether there is a correlation between awareness and action. Supporters find creative things to do during that hour. Critics think that turning lights off for one hour on a Saturday evening isn’t much of a sacrifice.

One thing is clear though, Earth Hour is making an impact even if it just gets people to think more about what can happen in one hour.

Ideas For Participating In Earth Hour

If you’re planning on participating in Earth Hour this Saturday night or if you’re just now learning about it. Here are some ideas what to do during that hour of darkness.

Candlelit activities:

• play games – cards, dominoes, board games, etc
• do shadow puppet theater
• have a late candlelit dinner or wait to have dessert by candlelight

Flashlight activities:

• play flashlight tag or flashlight Simon Says (can be done indoors or outdoors)
• have everyone pile in bed together, let the kids hold the flashlight while you hold the book and read
• tell ghost stories

More Indoor activities:

• meditate – prepare beforehand and have some thoughts or quotes or scriptures ready
• have a good old fashioned sing along – camp songs, silly songs, hymns, etc
• create some heat in the bedroom – hey, it’s going to be dark anyway…

Outdoor activities:

• if it’s a clear night, lay in the yard and star gaze (find printable star charts here)
• have a fire and make s’mores
• do flashlight games outdoors (see above)

Do you have plans to participate in Earth Hour?

What do you think you’ll do during that hour of darkness?

photo credits: myearthhour.org, mjmonty, kin0be