Earth Hour 2010 was in my opinion a tremendous success. Now in its third year, at 8:30 pm local time for an hour this past Saturday, the entire world participated in turning off non-essential lights and appliances to raise awareness towards the need to take action on climate change.

Over 125 countries participated this year which according to reports is the largest Earth Hour to date. Even numerous world landmarks participated including:

• Eiffel Tower in France
• Times Square in New York City
• Sydney Opera House in Australia
• St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City

Technology has been able to solve many of our problems thereby making various aspects of life more efficient and simple. However, in some cases technology has created new problems especially to our environment. One such environmental issue is the depletion of the ozone due to chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) widely used as coolants in refrigeration and air conditioners, as solvents in cleaners and for electronic circuit boards.

In order to guarantee our existence, initiatives like Earth Hour movement prove extremely important. If one of our primary instincts is to survive then we all need to do our part to raise an awareness of the need for climate change. Our future depends on it.