DID YOU join last night’s Earth Hour? We hope you did. The annual activity is a reminder to all of us to help protect the planet.
Filipinos are said to have short memories. We have to remind ourselves of how needlessly wasteful we can be — of electric energy, water, and other resources that we thoughtlessly believe we have in abundance but of which we are, increasingly, in short supply.
Yes, people need to act together to protect the planet from the impacts of climate change. For too long now, we have dealt with Earth as a treasure-trove to be plundered at will, exploited to the hilt. We have been sufficiently warned: There is only so much abuse the environment can take before it pays us back. In full.
Organized by the World Wildlife Fund, Earth Hour as a yearly event marked by governments, citizens and environment activists is a campaign that seeks to remind people of the need to cut the use of fossil fuels and protect the planet. Joining Earth Hour is a way for the people to supplement the efforts of the government to combat climate change. It’s true, the government’s commitment is not enough. It takes a renewal not only of our commitment to care for the Earth, but of our faith, to be able to recognize the world we live in as God’s gift, our common heritage as his sons and daughters.
Yes, even small acts like turning off lights when not needed can contribute greatly in healing our planet. We all know that our home planet is not in its best state due to global warming. Turning off unused lights and other electrical appliances for an hour may seem too insignificant to change the world but if all of us, the billions of citizens around the globe, will do it, the impact would be immense.
We can go beyond the Earth Hour and join the rest of the world in efforts to save energy, reduce carbon emissions and raise awareness on sustainability and environmental challenges. The Earth Hour proves we are capable of doing something to protect our planet. Small acts, when put together, create big change.
