E NV IRON MENT
turn up the dark
By Taylor Lieberstein
TURN OFF THE LIGHTS AND TURN ON THE STARS: EARTH HOUR 2020. Climate change has been on the radar for decades. Long before Tennessee’s own Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth was made mandatory watching in high schools, scientists continued to warn citizens and leaders around the world of the dangers of fossil fuels, of corporate greed, and destruction of the environment. To see the world in 2020 is to see a world that is dealing with the serious and detrimental impacts of climate change. We’re the first generation to know for sure that we are destroying our planet. And we could be the last that can do anything about it. Protecting nature is one of the most immediate, powerful, and cost-effective solutions to the climate crisis. We live in an interconnected world. Every action we take impacts life around us, and increasingly those impacts are harmful. Our ever-growing demand for food, water, and energy is changing the climate faster than predicted and it comes at a cost for wildlife, wild places, and people everywhere. In some parts of the world, flooding has forced people to flee their homes, while drought has led to severe food and water shortages, creating civil unrest and in some instances armed conflict. Many people are developing what psychologists
are calling “eco-anxiety,” a term used to refer to the anxiety experienced as a result of a future planet made unbelievable by climate change. Every year, millions of people around the world take part in the global conservation effort that began in 2007 by the World Wildlife Federation (WWF) in Sydney. As the name suggests, Earth Hour invites everyone around the world to participate in a day devoted to the planet. For an hour, the aim is to go dark and take part in a movement that casts a bright light on stronger action on climate change to protect our planet. Many major landmarks and neon signs are switched off for the hour and they are extremely noticeable. You may be able to see dramatic changes in large business districts or at iconic landmarks and buildings around the world and in your city. To show support for our Earth turn off all non-essential lights for an hour on Saturday, March 28, 2020 at 8:30 p.m. Aside from going lights out for the hour, the movement encourages individuals, schools and workplaces to think about their own habits and how they can make these Continued on page 10
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Clarksville Living
