Only 3,500 of 10,000 homes approached were open to it, but some businesses did their part
Shobana Kesava, Straits Times 30 Mar 08;
LIGHTS out at 8pm, please, for the 'green hour'.
This was the earnest message from 330 student volunteers who went a-knocking at 10,000 Hougang households yesterday.
As it turned out, however, the response was lukewarm.
The youth were participating in the first annual global Earth Hour - to get as many people worldwide as possible to switch their lights off for an hour when the clock struck eight.
The students, from three schools, fanned out from Punggol Community Club in Hougang at 6pm.
But president of Eco-Singapore, Mr Wilson Ang, 26, whose non-profit organisation organised the activities in the area, said the students found that not many in the 80 blocks were receptive.
'We estimate that of the 10,000 homes we went to, 3,500 were open to it,' he said.
Damai Secondary School student Fariz Hazri, 15, said that only about one in 10 people opened their doors to him.
'After I convinced them I wasn't selling anything, I spoke to them for a minute to ask them to join in switching off lights as part of the anti-global warming message,' he said.
His schoolmate, Tan Wei Lin, 16, said: 'The elderly were the ones who seemed most receptive to the idea. They smiled and nodded a lot.'
A check by The Sunday Times found most households in the area still well lit at 8.30pm. One couple said while lights-out was a good idea, it had slipped their minds.
Tutor Gwen Lee, 32, said the concept was new to her, but thought the idea was a good one.
'I'd heard of Earth Day, but not Earth Hour,' she said.
Mr Raymond Lim, 59, an industrial relations officer who was at home with his mother and daughter, did not like having his house in darkness. But he said he engaged in other environmentally friendly practices.
'We switch off the lights when we leave a room, we recycle paper and use cloth which we can wash instead of tissues which you just throw away,' he said.
Elsewhere in Singapore, the results were mixed too.
At least 18 schools across the island had already worked to raise awareness about Earth Hour last week. Serangoon Secondary School had students switch lights off for an hour last Friday, from 11am.
When the bell went on Friday, about 120 students and staff at Raffles Girls' School (Secondary) had signed a pledge to switch off all electrical devices at home.
The Marina skyline was dimmed somewhat when office towers, hotels and some shopping centres switched off their lights for an hour from 8pm.
Among the buildings in the city's commercial and retail heart that went dimmer were Singapore landmarks such as the Suntec convention centre and Raffles City Singapore, which shut off its facade lighting, as well as NTUC Building and Capital Tower.
Four Seasons Hotel and the Earth Bar in Rowell Road offered candle-lit dinners. But most shops and restaurants carried on business as usual.
The 20 or so involved corporations are estimated to have saved at least 6,800kwh in lighting, enough power to pay for electricity bills in a four-room flat for about a year.
Philips Electronics Singapore said it saved 850kwh by switching off lighting throughout its Toa Payoh complex, except for safety lights. This was equivalent to over two months of power for a four-room flat.
Globally, about 287,000 people and 20,000 businesses signed up for Earth Hour 2008.
The first Earth Hour was initiated last March in Australia. It was organised by World Wildlife Fund for Nature.
Singaporeans join global Earth Hour effort to spread climate change message
Channel NewsAsia 30 Mar 08;
SINGAPORE : Singapore is playing its part in a global effort to curb climate change.
Businesses here have been switching off the lights in their buildings for an hour between 8pm and 9pm.
The event called Earth Hour was held for the first time in Sydney last year. 2.2 million people and more than 2,000 business people took part.
Singapore companies like CapitaLand are flicking the switch at nine of its buildings such as Capital Tower and Raffles City.
But the worldwide effort is not just for the big players.
In Punggol, youngsters got involved too. More than 300 students visited thousands of homes to urge residents to turn off their lights and join an Earth Hour event at Punggol Community Club.
"They are still not very clear about global warming. But when we go and talk to them about this and sell the idea to them, many are really willing to go forward and help," said one youth volunteer.
Other schools, colleges and businesses in Singapore have also signed up to turn off their lights. Other cities like Melbourne and Chicago are also part of the global effort. - CNA /ls
