Go beyond the hour

Switch off all your lights. Huddle around a table with a candle and play scrabble, monopoly or snakes and ladders. Tell ghost stories. Make your own lanterns. Lie on a blanket in the garden and watch the stars or run around with sparklers. These are all things that you can do when you switch your lights off on Saturday night, from 8.30 to 9.30pm for Earth Hour.
Earth Hour is an international event organised by the WWF to support our planet by creating awareness about climate change. This event has been happening annually since 2007, with 128 countries participating last year. To participate, switch off all your lights and electrical appliances for the hour. This year, people are encouraged to go beyond the hour by making lifestyle changes and limiting electricity usage.
SEACC SF, GRASS and Astro Soc will feature performances by Drum Soc, BUA poetry society and Voices of Glory in the Botanical Gardens. The evening will kick off at 6pm with a screening of the documentary, 'Gasland', at Eden Grove Red, followed by a short presentation on the proposed hydraulic fracturing in the Karoo. Moving across to the Botanical Gardens, Earth Hour celebrations will continue from 8:30pm until late. Entrance is free and everyone is welcome. Bring your own drinks and a picnic.

Here are 10 tips for everyday living:
1. Ensure that you switch off unnecessary lighting and appliances
around your home or office.
2. Don’t overcharge your batteries in your cell phones, laptops,
shavers, or electric toothbrushes. Rather switch off the chargers at the
plug as soon as the batteries are charged.
3. Cut down on driving where possible by arranging lift clubs to school
or work, or using alternative transport to reduce traffic and harmful
emissions whilst saving on petrol costs.
4. Be waste-wise by recycling and starting a compost-heap. You’ll be
sending less household waste to the landfill each week.
5. Go for solar heating as an alternative to the electric heating of
your geyser.
6. Make sure your fridge is working efficiently by keeping it ¾ to
fully stocked, cleaning the coils, and closing the door tightly.
7.  Ensure that your oven is efficiently used. Or switch to a gas oven.
8. Replace traditional light bulbs with energy-saving ones throughout
your home. Remember to recycle these light bulbs correctly.
9.  Become an eco-friendly shopper by making wise consumer
decisions and choosing reusable packaging.
10.  As much as possible, use gas heating instead of electric heating in winter.
More info is available on http://www.earthhour.org.za/
Published in Grocott's Mail on 25 March 2011.