Earth Hour - great tips for your family

March 28, 12:25 PMParenting ExaminerTerreece Clarke

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Oriental Pearl Tower, left tallest building, and Shanghai World Financial Center, right tallest, are seen before they were darkened for one hour to mark Earth Hour in Shanghai, China, Saturday, March 28 , 2009. The lights are going down from the Great Pyramids to the Acropolis, the Eiffel Tower to Sears Tower, as more than 2,800 municipalities in 84 countries plan Saturday to mark the second worldwide Earth Hour. (AP Photo/Ji Chen)

Today, all around the world, at 8:30 p.m. local time cities, homes and businesses have gone dark for 1 hour to draw awareness to global climate change and cutting back on consumption of power and it's not too late for your family to be a part of the global movement.

According to EarthHour.Org:

Earth Hour began in Sydney in 2007, when 2.2 million homes and businesses switched off their lights for one hour. In 2008 the message had grown into a global sustainability movement, with 50 million people switching off their lights. Global landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Rome’s Colosseum, the Sydney Opera House and the Coca Cola billboard in Times Square all stood in darkness.

"Turn off the lights when you leave a room," takes on a different meaning when kids understand the impact of their actions on the environment. So tonight, at 8:30 p.m. your time, turn off your non-essential lights for an hour and have fun with a few of these fun activities:

• Light candles and play a few board games like Scrabble, Candyland, etc. - FrugalDad.Com
• "Scavenge and save: Set up a scavenger hunt in and around your house to mark off areas where energy can be saved. Place flags or stickers in spots where appliances or computers can be unplugged and lights turned off, highlighting the spots where they can make a difference." - WWF.org "Celebrating Earth Hour as a Family"
  

More tips on how to talk to your kids about the environment:

Teaching Your Kids About the Environment - Parent Connect.Com