Imagine it is 8:30 in the evening. You’re driving over the Golden Gate Bridge admiring the bright lights when suddenly it goes completely dark. You might reasonably think San Francisco is experiencing a power outage, but if it’s a Saturday sometime around the equinox, you might be wrong. That is what happened to author Nanette Heffernan who later discovered it was no power outage but rather Earth Hour.

Earth Hour is a worldwide event held in March. Millions of people participate by turning off their lights at 8:30 p.m. in their respective time zones. Not only does the Golden Gate Bridge go dark, but so do other momentous structures such as the Statue of Liberty, the Sydney Opera House, the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal, and the Great Wall of China. Towns, cities, and homes also turn off their lights across all seven continents. It is a moment of solidarity and a pledge to conserve Earth’s resources.

Intrigued, Heffernan, a certified sustainability consultant for California schools, joined the movement. Protecting the environment came naturally to her. While volunteering in her children’s elementary school cafeteria, she was dismayed at the amount of plastic thrown away. One afternoon she took it upon herself to do a trash audit and discovered that about 80% of the trash from the elementary school came from lunch. Wanting to reduce that waste, she shared with the principal an idea about making a hat out of plastic baggies. After the hat quickly became full, Heffernan realized she would need to make a much larger costume. It was a hit! Heffernan began to wear the trash costume to bring awareness to the issue and get the students to shift to waste-free lunches. Within a month, the school reduced their lunch trash by an incredible 50%.

Lucky for us, Heffernan pledged to spread the word about Earth Hour, and her book Earth Hour: A Lights-Out Event for Our Planet was born. With her down-to-earth yet eloquent style coupled with Bao Luu’s stunning artwork, the book, in part, illustrates how electricity is a component of our everyday lives. We later see families celebrating Earth Hour with darkened landmarks silhouetted in the background.

Rather than being preachy, this cozy book is a poignant tribute to our world and to respecting its resources. Heffernan understands that when you’re young, you don’t have as many choices. “You have to go to school; you have to take a bath; you have to clean your room. With Earth Hour, children don’t need permission to make a pledge to turn off the bathroom light or the kitchen sink.” Earth Hour: A Lights-Out Event for Our Planet brings awareness and empowerment by teaching us how even small changes can make a huge difference.

She equates Earth Hour to Valentine’s Day. “We love each other all year long, but on Valentine’s Day, we go out of our way to let those people know how much we care. We are conserving and doing our part all year long, but we’re reaffirming our pledge on Earth Hour.”

And much like beloved Valentine’s books that are displayed every February in schools, homes, and libraries, Earth Hour: A Lights-Out Event for Our Planet is the perfect book to highlight every March to show our love for the planet.

Earth Hour, which falls on March 27^th this year, is coordinated by the World Wildlife Fund. To enter a pledge and for a real-time countdown, visit the author’s webpage here.

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