Its almost 4 years now that our family supports the “Earth Hour” movement. It becomes also our initiative to turn off the lights even it is not Earth Hour.
What is Earth Hour?
Envisioned as a unique and highly-visual way to stand against climate change, Earth Hour uses the simple action of turning off lights for 60 minutes to deliver a powerful message on the need for decisive climate change solutions. This simple act has captured the hearts and minds of people the world over.
Earth Hour began in 2007 as a single-city event. Today, it has become the largest recurring environmental mass-action, with 154 of the world’s 196 countries joining the global switch-off. The Philippines has been championing Earth Hour since 2008.
Earth Hour 2014 is slated from 8:30pm to 9:30pm on Saturday night, 29 March.
Among the featured crowd-funding projects is Bancas for the Philippines, a project of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-Philippines).
Initially conceived to help Yolanda-afflicted coastal communities in Northern Palawan and the Eastern Visayas, the project aims to introduce fiberglass boat-making technology to restore food security, increase climate resilience by reducing boat construction time, and decrease current reliance on hardwoods for banca construction.
Through the support of donors, the project provides materials, training and boat moulds, which shall be awarded to selected communities so fisherfolk can build bancas to jumpstart self-sufficiency.
Compared to wooden boats, fiberglass bancas are lighter, easier, faster and cheaper to both build and maintain – with repairs as simple as patching up cracks and holes with epoxy or fiberglass. Unlike wood, fiberglass is completely watertight and does not expand when wet.
The project aims to restore food security while avoiding an increase in fishing pressure by ensuring that boats do not exceed 20 feet in length and are propelled chiefly by sails or paddles, promoting artisanal or small-scale fishing. To contribute to the goals of the year-long project, the Earth Hour crowd-funding platform aims to raise $24,000 for 60 bancas by mid-April.
“Give a man some fish and you’ll feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you can feed him forever,” concludes Tan.
“We invite corporations and individuals to support Bancas for the Philippines via the Earth Hour crowd-funding platform. Through your help, we can help Yolanda-hit prepare for the rougher seas brought about by climate change. Together, let us keep hope afloat.”
If you like to donate, here is the link: http://ehour.me/BANCAS
Watch the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_IaY72m1mU&feature=youtu.be
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