Green Energy Hour is an idea for an event inspired by Earth Hour. Rather than turning off lights and electrical appliances, participants would make another symbolic action somehow, demonstrating the joy, abundance and clean conscience of having sustainably generated electricity.

As a participant in Green Energy Hour, you will do something that makes a big difference to your carbon footprint:

• Ring up your power company and ask to sign up to green power. (It's okay if you do it before Green Energy Hour - that will help stop their switchboard from melting down.)
• If you don't have a green power option available, tell your power company that you want that option...
• ...and then look up an "offset" option such as renewable energy certificates (?). This lets you effectively "offset" the high-carbon energy you're using, by paying for extra renewable energy to replace some high-carbon energy in a different location.
• Tell people what you did. Not smugly, not like a evangelist - just let people know what you learned and that it's not that hard, and not shockingly expensive, to switch to green energy.

If you're already on a green power contract, you can skip the first two, and just tell people. Put up a poster at work. Make a poster or a cool image for the event, if you're creative. Post on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest. Tell people that you're keeping your lights on when you need them, and it's good for the climate because you're supporting the growth of the green energy industry.

• If you have "green energy" - whether from their own solar panels or from the local power company's green power program - turning on a light for an hour during the day. It's completely unnecessary, but because it's green energy, it's actually a statement about the abundance that's available through renewable energy.

Why?

Earth Hour is a great, inspiring event, but is sometimes criticized as tokenism. Indeed, turning off the lights for an hour is insignificant. But it's a clear, simple action that anyone can take, and feel like they're part of something.

Wouldn't it be great if we had a clear and simple action that anyone can take, that actually reduced our carbon footprint for the rest of the year, and beyond? For most of us, we do! That's Green Energy Hour.

Contacts

This is a brand new idea (2 April 2012). We don't have an email list or anything, yet. If you're interested, please leave a note on the talk page. Or contact Chris Watkins. (Note from Chris Watkins - this idea came about on my Facebook page - I'm not a marketer, but I'm happy to help promote the idea. --Chriswaterguy 13:38, 1 April 2012 (PDT))