Earth Hour Campaign, Put Out 60 Minutes Light For Earth Better

JAKARTA The Earth Hour Community invited the public to turn off the lights for 60 minutes or an hour on Saturday (23/3/2024) night. The Twitch Off activity or turning off the lights for one hour is a symbolic step for our concern for climate change on planet Earth.

We cannot deny that electricity is a human necessity that cannot be avoided. In today's era, almost all needs need it. However, excessive use of electricity can also cause problems in the environment.

One of the impacts that overuse electricity is the contribution to greenhouse effects.

The greenhouse effect is a natural phenomenon in which the earth's atmosphere in maintaining it is in accordance with life. Electric production of fossil fuels such as coal and petroleum can produce carbon dioxide (CO2) which is the most important greenhouse.

In addition to CO2, other gases such as methane (CH4) and water vapor (H2O) also act like glasses' on greenhouses, which is to allow sunlight to enter the atmosphere and warm the earth's surface. But on the one hand, these gases also limit the amount of heat coming out of the atmosphere.

Human activity in using fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas apparently causes a drastic increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. As a result, greenhouse effects become stronger and cause global warming that has an impact on climate change.

The impact of climate change can trigger a number of problems, ranging from hotter temperatures, high rainfall that causes floods and landslides, increasing drought, decreasing water quality and quantity, and so on.

Citing Active Sustainability, Earth Hour's first edition was held in Sydney in 2007, although the real idea was born three years earlier when the World Wide Fund (WWF) nature conservation group wanted to involve Australians in the issue of climate change. They then collaborated with Leo Burnett to trigger the Earth Hour campaign.

Then on March 31, 2007, Australia's most populous city went dark for an hour after gaining local government support.

This action had a huge visual impact so that in the next edition, around 20 buildings and monuments around the world were involved in the Earth Hour movement, such as the Emipire State, Golden Gate, Roman Coliseum, London City Hall, Petronas Tower, and others.

Simply put, Earth Hour is a global movement that invites individuals, communities, practitioners, businesses, and governments around the world to turn off lights and non-essential electrical equipment for one hour as symbolic conditions to raise awareness about climate change.

Earth Hour is usually held on the last Saturday of March every year, from 20.30 to 21.30 local time.

Earth Hour reminds us to return some of what we enjoy from naturelam, the easiest way is to turn off unused lights and electronic devices symbolically because the lights symbolize how humans should take advantage of natural resources in a sustainable manner, explained Aditya Bayunan, CEO of the Indonesian WWF Foundation.

In Indonesia itself, the Earth Hour movement began in 2009. Jakarta is one of the cities that has consistently supported this one-hour blackout campaign. PJ Governor of DKI Jakarta Heru Budi invited the public to return to participate in the action of turning off the lights for one hour this weekend.

"I appreciate the role of the Jakarta Eart Hour community in showing its concern in preventing climate change and other environmental communities through the 2024 Jakarta Switch Off Earth Hour," said Heru Budi.

"I invite all Jakartans to participate in the 2024 Jakarta Switch Off Hour activities as a form of our commitment and concrete actions in synergizing to support the long-term changes in nature and the environment in Indonesia," he added.

According to data from WWF Indonesia, every 10 percent of Jakarta residents who kill the camp during Earth Hour, their energy can be used to meet the electricity needs of 900 villages. In addition, the energy saved can contribute oxygen to 524 people.

Within just one hour, this can also reduce 267 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. In Earth Hour 2022, the DKI Jakarta Environment Agency (LH) said the action saved up to IDR 171 million in energy.

In Jakarta, the locations for blackouts are generally carried out in all buildings or offices of the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government, except for hospitals, health centers, and clinics. Protocol roads and arterial roads in five areas were also extinguished.

In addition, lights on seven symbols of the city of Jakarta were also extinguished, namely, the DKI Jakarta City Hall Building, Monas along with fountains, the Arjuna Wijaya Statue, the Indonesian Hotel Roundabout, the Youth Statue along with the fountain, the Hero Statue, and the Sudirman Statue.

Several private buildings, commercial buildings, shopping centers, restaurants, hotels, and apartments were also informed to participate in extinguishing.

Turning off the lights for 60 minutes is considered to have had nothing to do with climate change. In fact, turning off an hour's lights is a tangible manifestation that we are participating for better earth change.