Last night, at 8:30 while walking down the street, we noticed that the lights along Nanjing Road had gone out. We had just finished our dinner, and it was good to see that the normally bright lights of Plaza 66 were off.
There are a few articles covering the event, and I am pleasantly surprised with the results that the WWF team achieved. They have done a good job.
Over the last week, I have heard a number of comments and read a number of posts about the effectiveness of the event, and whether or not it meant anything. It is a hard question to address, however I am optimistic that the event on the whole is a good thing as it
(1) people and governments around the world shut off their lights, showing an awareness of the issues we face (good thing)
(2) these people and organizations, through their actions will have an ongoing impact as they talk about their participation with friends (good thing)
(3) the free media attention that has come along with the event only guarantees that WWF will have a larger platform next year to bring more participants into the fold
A couple of areas that I feel can/ need to be improved are:
1) Time
Honestly, of all the criticisms that I heard – and discussed – it was that asking companies around the world to run off their lights at 8:30 pm on a Saturday night was the biggest one. It is simply a continuation of asking people to make a change without sacrificing anything, and we are teaching this as a solution when it is not.
Make the time one that requires companies/ people to make a sacrifice that goes beyond the symbolic. People need to begin understanding, and recognizing that we are not going to overcome the issues we face by simply cutting the fat off a weekend night.
2) Education
Giving out candles and asking people to turn off their lights cannot be the platform. It should not be “the” event, but a means to and end where money raised can go into education programs that create awareness in students, within communities, and drive companies to make longer lasting change.
These events need to be the entry point to a wider platform that scales organically and bring real results through changing mindsets.
I myself believe that there is a platform here, and that the event itself can be a called a success, but I encourage groups like McDonald’s to sign up at a much higher level next year because if they don’t I believe WWF will have the ability to leverage social media against them… those businesses who leave their lights on.
