Fifth Grade
Worksheets
Earth Hour Power
The Golden Gate Bridge went dark. The Space Needle in Seattle did, too. At exactly 8:30 pm on March 27, 2010, every light at the Empire State Building was turned off. What happened? Was something wrong? Sort of! It was Earth Hour 2010. Nearly a billion people and businesses on each of the seven continents made a statement. It was time to save energy and save our planet!
Earth Hour is a movement that was started by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). It is the largest climate event in history. The WWF realizes that our planet is heating up. Greenhouse gasses, caused by the burning of fossil fuels, are affecting the global climate. This affects all of us who call the Earth home. Arctic animals are really beginning to feel this change. The rise in temperature has begun to melt sea ice in the Arctic. Polar bears are being forced to change their migratory and feeding patterns. They have to travel farther and farther to find food.
The WWF started Earth Hour in 2007 as a way to bring attention to the global climate crisis. They encourage people from all over the world to participate by turning off their lights for one hour. This helps the planet in several ways. First, it helps to make people aware of the energy that they use on a regular basis. It also sends a powerful message to the leaders in our world. When millions of people take a stand to help the planet, our leaders are encouraged to find alternative energy sources, such as solar and wind power.
