Earth Hour: Media Hype or Effective Awareness Building?

Image via Wikipedia

I enjoyed my Earth Hour at home with a warm bath and some pleasant conversation with my husband. It was surprisingly relaxing to spend an evening without lights, tv or computer, but did it really make a difference?

In the long run, spending an hour in the dark once a year is unlikely to significantly reduce my carbon footprint, or impact climate change in a meaningful way. So does this mean its all just media hype?

Of course not! Earth Hour is about building awareness about climate change and how each of us can make choices that can help to reduce our impact on the planet. Its about how collectively we are powerful. Its about making us think about the things we do.

Earth Hour was a reminder for me about how much I take for granted. Lights that turn on at the flick of a switch, television, my computer, constant hot water, a hot drink in minutes, smoke free cooking (well most of the time!) . . .

For a quarter of humanity this is sheer luxury. Some 1.6 billion people live without electricity. In developing countries some 2.5 billion people are forced to rely on wood, charcoal and animal dung to meet their energy needs for cooking. Indoor air pollution resulting from the use of solid fuels claims the lives of 1.5 million people each year, more than half of them below the age of five: that is 4000 deaths a day.

Earth Hour made me think about the way my family and I consume resources as we go about our daily lives. There is a huge global disparity between the haves and the have-nots:

The 12 percent of the world’s population that lives in North America and Western Europe accounts for 60 percent of private consumption spending, while the one-third living in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa accounts for only 3.2 percent (The State of Consumption)

By choosing to consume less - whether it be electricity, chocolate bars or petrol - we do something to even things up. By choosing to consume less and donating even a portion of the savings we make to charities that address global poverty we are doing even more.

What did Earth Hour mean to you?

Don't worry, there's plenty more where that came from!

There are times when an argument put forward is so glaringly flawed, breathtakingly idiotic and utterly without common sense that it defies belief. This I believe is one of them:

“Besides, the whole concept that we’re “running out of room” to put our garbage and/or have landfills is absolutely ridiculous. If you took every man woman and child currently living on the Earth (6,706,993,152 as of July 2008) and moved them all to Australia we’d each still have roughly a third of an acre of our own private land (Australia is roughly 2,967,909 sq mi. There are 640 acres in a square mile which means there are 1,899,461,760 acres in Australia. Divided by the Earth’s population, we each get 0.28 acres). That would leave the entire rest of the planet empty. Do you not think we could fit both recreational area as well as vast amounts of landfill space on all of North America, South America, Africa, Europe and Asia? Of course I’m not suggesting that we undertake such a ridiculous plan, but it should clarify that the Earth has plenty of empty land that could be used for waste disposal.”

Morgan Hill Review

I am flabbergasted that any sane person would put forward such a ludicrous suggestion. Even with the caveat at the end of the paragraph. In fact, that makes it worse “the Earth has plenty of empty land that could be used for waste disposal”.

I don't know of any vast tracts of empty land that could be better used as a landfill. Image via WikipediaPerhaps the beautiful Fiordland National Park in New Zealand. Its full of sandflies and really doesn't serve any useful purpose.

Image by nunavut via FlickrThe Sahara desert, I guess, really isn't the most productive area, we could do without that.

Image by Ron Layters via FlickrOh, the Grand Canyon – you wouldn't even have to dig a hole there!

Honestly, have people become so deeply disconnected with the land that they only see it as having value if it is under cultivation, making money, or directly and measurably benefiting the needs of humankind?

The whole idea that there is “plenty of empty land that could be used for waste disposal” calls to mind the Mad Hatter's Tea Party. If we continue to squander the planets natural resource as we are, if we pay no mind to the mindnumbingly vast quantities of waste we produce as a result of our consumption, then sooner or later we will find ourselves sitting in front of a pile of dirty dishes.

Nature is not here to serve us. It will continue on perfectly well long after we are gone from the planet. However, we will not fare so well if the earth's eco-system becomes irreversibly changed and can no longer sustain the conditions we need for our continued survival. Its in our best interests to consume wisely, to live lightly, and to value the environment in and of itself.

The American Dream

Image by FotoRita [Allstar maniac] via Flickr

I don't, as a general rule, like to get mired in American politics. But (bet you saw that coming!!), I couldn't help looking up this whole Joe the Plumber saga.

I'm sure there is more to it than this, but what really took my breath away was his comment:

"Its not for the Government to decide I earn a little too much and so I need to share it with other people. That's not the American dream"

Americans seem to have interpreted the American Dream as the individual pursuit of succcess, fame and wealth. And while this has led to Americans (in general) becoming wealthier and better educated than ever, it doesn't seem to have made them happy.

According to Dr. Steve McSwain, that is because the life they really want, the true American Dream, is not in getting, but in giving.

"The happiest and healthiest people are those who have
learned to be extravagantly generous. In an age of unprecedented wealth
and record charitable giving, McSwain makes a compelling argument that
your highest purpose in life is to give yourself away and generously
share your abundance with the world."

Historian and writer James Truslow Adams coined the phrase "American Dream" in his 1931 book Epic of America:

"The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be
better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each
according to ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the
European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us
ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of
motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which
each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature
of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for
what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or
position."

While he doesn't specifically mention sharing and generosity, it seems to be implied. If life is going to be 'better and richer and fuller for everyone", then everyone needs to have fair access to resources - education, healthcare, housing. . . and for this to happen there needs to be a fair balance between the needs of the individual and the needs of the community.

For all Americans to achieve the American Dream, it seems obvious that there is a need for a fair system of wealth distribution. Not only in America, but globally, people need to be asking themselves how much is enough? We need to be considering the difference between personal financial security and hoarding wealth. And we need to think long an hard about the ethics of pursuing our own financial advancement at the expense of others.

Quite frankly Joe the Plumber, you do need to share with others. Given that people in your enviable position are obviously not doing this of their own accord, maybe it is time for the American Government to step in and force the issue.

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What would you give up?

Image via Wikipedia I recently discovered The Luxury Fund (via My Greening: Going Green).

Heres an excerpt from their introduction:

This is how it works. Today, you could decide to skip your cup of coffee at the local (or global) coffee shop and instead of running your check card for $3 at the coffee shop, you can run it right here and add $3 to the luxury fund. It's an easy way to make a small sacrifice with a huge impact around the world that can literally save lives. This is not a monthly or annual commitment, it's a day by day choice, and if you decide to forgo a luxury, you can come here immediately and add your money to the fund.

The money is all donated to 4 charities - Blood Water Mission, Compassion International, International Justice Mission, Love 146

Its a great idea, and definitely a positive step towards living an 'enough' based lifestyle!

So, what will YOU give up?

5 Ideas to Help You say "Enough"

Image via WikipediaThe idea that we must constantly be striving to obtain more possessions is at the core of any capitalist democracy - and, by the looks of things, at least one large 'communist' dictatorship. Its an idea that society has embraced without question, and without regard to the true cost.

These days most people in developed nations work longer than they did some 50 years ago. We have less leisure time and spend less time with our families. We are deeper in debt than ever before and less connected with our neighbourhoods. And these are just some of the social costs.

The environment is also suffering from an economic system based on constant growth. We are drowning in rubbish, destroying pristine environments, and chasing species after species down to extinction.

Isn't it time someone said "ENOUGH!"?

If you want to help us all get out of the rat race here's some ideas to help you find what is enough for you:

1. Ask the big questions
Socrates, by all accounts, used to upset his fellow citizens by asking them to analyse the obvious and think deeply about widely held assumptions. Try challenging yourself with the following questions (and any others that you come up with):
What do I need to live a comfortable life?
What is the difference between financial security & hoarding wealth?
Who would I be without my possessions?
Is my financial security attained at the expense of others?
Does having more stuff make me happier?

Feel free to share you answers with us in the comments section.

2. Try GivingMany of us a so scared about losing our 'stuff' that we protect it at all costs. But if you really want to attract more abundance into your life try giving things away. Sign up for the 29-Day Giving Challenge and give one thing away every day for 29 days. Who knows what you'll find yourself giving away.

3. Go WithoutGive the credit cards a rest and indulge in a week without buying anything but the essentials. Sometimes less really is more - or at least enough!

4. Take StockMake an inventory of everything you own. How much of it do you actually use? How much of it do you owe money on? How much of it did you not even know you had? What things are actually essential items that you use regularly? What things would make you feel worse off if you no longer had them?

5. Be Grateful
Take the time to be thankful for the things you do have - and not just your physical possessions. Remember to value the things money can't buy. Often the very act of being grateful can help you realise what is important to you.