Last night, my family and I participated in the global phenomenon, Earth Hour. I planned it out so that my youngest was bathed and dinner was ready just before 8:30 pm EST. I powered-down the house and we sat by candlelight, ate our dinner and played a game of chess. Surprisingly, the kids enjoyed every bite of their dinner, eating without one single complaint or moan (we had salmon and broccoli), as well as finding the candlelight to be “neat”. The whole experience was quite relaxing. The concept of Earth Hour began in Australia two years ago as a way to bring awareness to energy conservation and the human contribution to global warming. What it has also done for my family, and possibly families across the globe, is provide an opportunity for good, old-fashioned quality time.
The current generation of kids, appropriately referred to as the Media Generation or Gen Z, is more connected to the various media and technological resources available today. Weekends tend to be filled with the buzz of video games, computers and televisions. There are the occasional opportunities for outdoor-related activities, especially when the weather is nice, but usually only when I initiate it. As a single parent, it is easy to allow the kids to get sucked into their games and videos in order to get to some necessary household chores. But when I want to turn everything off and have the kids do some other activity, there is often resistance. Implementing Earth Hour was different because I provided a why that made sense to the kids. They are already environmentally-conscious and know the importance of certain activities such as recycling, composting, eating locally-grown or organic foods, and turning off light switches when exiting rooms. This is something that I am proud that I have been able to teach by example. So when I explained to them why we were turning off all of the lights and electronics for one hour they gladly accepted the challenge.
The new challenge I am presented with is to continue the effort of powering down for one hour at least once per week, opening up the door to dedicated family-time. Each week, probably a Saturday night, my family and I will turn off the lights and electronics in the house and gather for an enjoyable family activity. The benefits will be endless. We will feel good about our contribution to reducing carbon-emissions and will be developing stronger family bonds without the interruption of electronics.
Tags: conservation, Earth Hour, environment, Family
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