We owe this world a lot. From our very existence to the air we breathe, the food we eat and the people we meet. This Earth has given us the ground beneath our feet so we can stand on our own two feet; Earth has given us the beauty of nature—the plant and animal kingdom—that balances out the cycle of interdependence. Earth has given us fellow human beings walking the over the same soil, breathing the same air and living off the same resources. We owe our lives to this planet. 

And so, tonight; i.e., at 8:30 pm (GMT), on Saturday, 25th March 2017, when we switch off all our lights and every other source of electric power consumption, we, as the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) would rightly put it, “demonstrate the need for commitment to the future of our climate”. 

NASA

Global warming is a real problem. It’s as real as the wrinkles forming on our skin as we age; it’s real as the tan on our backs after we’ve basked under the sun for too long. The animal extinction problem is just as real as our pets dying suddenly. And so is the issue of depleting non-renewable resources, increasing unavailability of drinking water in the world and the disappearances and deaths of the sparrows and the bees from our eco system. And because we live and breathe in the same environment; and are part of the same chain of interdependence—no matter if we’re slightly higher up on the ladder—we owe it to each and every living organism on our planet, including the zooplankton, to strive for a better and brighter future of Earth. 

And if switching off all our electronic, power-backed lights and gadgets contributes to the longevity of Earth, in some minuscule way, we definitely do owe it to ourselves to do exactly that. You see, we might just be one individual, singularly; but, collectively, it is we who make up this world. And that’s roughly 7 billion souls across this tiny blue dot of a planet, in a galaxy somewhere in this limitless Universe.