Bob Geldof: Nobody outside Australia has heard of Earth Hour

I have mates in London who don’t know what it is (I just emailed them and asked…)

Movember, (as an example of a worthwhile Aussie initiated campaign) they do know about…

Perhaps it is because a ‘bloke’ will not sure green related topics on social networks for fear of being typecasted as a “Greenie”, however will pose for a photo, sporting a tache? 🙂

I can’t comment for women though?

Alternate headline: “Old man yet to hear of Google, Wikipedia” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E....._the_world

Todd will be crushed..

Saw Geldof interviewed on Lateline the other night. He’s the most negative, morose, exhausting individual I’ve ever heard speak. So I wouldn’t worry too much about this.

I asked an American friend and they had no idea about it.
It’s a bit of a non event in our household. We make sure we turn off lights when we leave rooms, don’t use air-conditioning, consume 95% of the food we buy and compost green waste. One hour turning off the lights is a Konyism for me.
People need to be empowered with initiatives. Price increases will likely be the only way the masses change consumption habits.

I must admit the event passed me by this year, didn’t even realise it was happening again and I live in Sydney.

The only thing I heard on Earth Hour this year was a post on facebook – and that was from a girl in London!

Re comment 1: share* green related topics…..

This comment: Re Earth Hour. Could it be that the majority of Australia’s press is right wing, anti “save the environment” and thus it doesn’t get a plug..?

I did hear of it whilst in the UK

I believe it’s massive in Hong Kong as well, It’s something that will take time to to spread.

By the way, Earth Hour actually creates more emissions than it saves, due to power stations having to adjust for the huge shift in load. Like a car having to break and accelerate will use more fuel than just driving at a constant speed. Maybe there’s a better way to create awareness (Earth Week??)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....90247.html

I am as green as they come, but Earth Hour is rubbish and always has been. The logic behind it is childish and flawed, and it just readily invites scorn from the right-wing climate change deniers. Maybe was ok for a year or two back in 2006 or 7 or whenever it started, as an awareness raiser, but just ridiculous now.

he’s right here. earth hour is one of the most overhyped pointless exercises in self-aggrandisement I’ve ever seen.

Movember is something that should rightly be lauded. The only difference is, Movember wasn’t created inside an agency (although it was created by ad guys) and entered into every award show on the planet, and continually hyped. It was just a brilliant idea that people have adopted and that has genuinely made a difference.

earth hour is greenwashing for people who want to experience the novelty of dining by candlelight once a year, and then do sweet fuck all about their carbon emissions the other 8,759 hours of the year.

Strange as I live in Asia and it is a huge event with millions of participants supporting the event. From shopping centers, iconic buildings, schools, our office even participated in the event and organised a long term plan.

The concept has develop into more than an hour with Russia legislation passed to protect the sea from the ‘I will if you will campaign’, Uganda has started a earth hour forest for 2,700 hectares. There is plenty of evidence this is beyond an hour. If you are to research the awareness and benefits of this digitally interconnected community. That has built a platform for individuals to make a difference within a country. Earth hour is about anyone making a change. There is no need to even discuss Bob Geldolf comments as they are quite ignorant.

Bob – what a load of rubbish. Turn your lights out!

Bob who?

The thing I like most about Bob talking is that it means he’s not signing.

What’s Earth Hour?

I was living in Vancouver in 2010, and my work place at the time supported Earth Hour.

It is done in Sri Lanka, much to the annoyance of the guests hotels!

I completely disagree! Earth Hour might be big in Sydney (?) but it’s a non event in WA. Based on my personal experience I reckon it’s actually better known overseas than in Australia – particularly throughout Asia. I’ve been in hotels that have warned me that the power would be cut off for an hour – this wouldn’t happen in Australia

Bob Geldof the man who made millions by saving millions….

I just got back from Shanghai…turned up to find a black inner city, and thought the power was out. The Westin’s hotel check-in was by candlelight.
It was earth hour, on a bloody big scale.
Bob, I admire a lot of what you’ve done, but on this occasion, you’re wrong.

And does anyone own their second album Mondo Bongo? I thought not…

World Earth Day is April 21 and then runs the whole week in USA so why isn’t the Aust Earth hour aligned with that? GLOBAL GREEN USA is the American affiliate of Green Cross International, founded by President Gorbachev, to foster a global value shift toward a sustainable and secure future.
For nearly 20 years, Global Green has been a national leader in advocating for smart solutions to global warming, including green building for affordable housing, schools, citiesand communities that save money, improve health and create green jobs.
http://www.globalgreen.org

I participate in Earth Hour each year and was surprised to read above that it was on this weekend. Saw, heard, read nothing about it this year.

We’ve heard of it in Cambodia.
Here’s an item I ran in the Phnom Penh Post:

EARTH HOUR AT LE MERIDIEN
At 8:30pm local time on Saturday, towns and cities around the world will come together in the largest environmental movement to protect the one thing that unites us all – planet Earth.
Starwood hotels’ Siem Reap flagship, Le Meridien Angkor, declares that it is proud to be supporting Earth Hour. It will do this with a cocktail soiree starting at 8.30pm on March 23 – guests will gather in the lobby to celebrate, and all lights in hotel area will be switched off for one hour. Refreshments and cocktails will be served in the dark for guests to enjoy.

No-one knows outside of Australia “cause all my cool friends all around the world don’t know about it, that’s why.” Says something about the international possie he associates with. There is plenty of awareness of this campaign in Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, China – as others have said as well.

Bob Geldof appears to be projecting his own lack of knowledge on to everyone else. Earth Hour 2013 celebrations around the world – in pictures

Did Australia have an Earth hour this year? In previous years I knew the day ….. if it has happened in 2013 already – the media and creative agencies should be sacked.

Earth Hour’s campaign has actually evolved from just ‘turn off your lights’ and encourages people to go beyond the hour and adopt sustainable actions in their day to day life. It began the next phase – an “I Will if You Will” campaign with the help of Youtube last year and over four million people gloablly visited the YouTube page and made or accepted pledges to be sustainable on the night. WWF Australia didn’t adopt the global campaign last year – EH is open sourced so they don’t have to, which is why most Australian’s are unaware of the ongoing movement.

Earth Hour openly admits turning lights off is a symbolic action, not sure why people STILL ask how much energy one hour of darkness saves – it’s an awareness campaign and the event does not purport to save energy by turning lights off for an hour – check the website. The Earth Hour global office moved to Singapore after last year’s event because it has become so globally focused. It definitely goes off all across Asia and in many other countries all over the world! https://www.youtube.com/user/earthhour

Not only does Bob Geldof’s music stink (as I’m sure he does – the man looks like his last shower was back in the Boomtown Rats’ heyday many decades ago), he is an arrogant, obnoxious twat. Earth Hour may not be as wide-reaching as some initiatives, but it at least raises public awareness and shows people that they can make a positive difference without needing to chain themselves to trees or whatever.

God, between him and Bono, they’ve got the ‘pop-star-who-thinks-he’s-the-second-coming’ market tied up.

Can we put people like Bob on advertising award juries?

I’ve just come back from India and visited a city called Shimla in the Himalayan foothills – the whole city actively participates in Earth Hour each year. So thats at least one other city/country involved.

@ don’t like geldof but…

A bit like Valentines Day it seems…..

I’m surprised, Bob and Earth Hour have a few things in common, I thought they’d get on better. They’re certainly both fun to ignore.

Having not paid my electricity bill, I’m currently having Earth Hour every night…..

I don’t like Mondays…….or earth hour.

Having met Bob Geldof in a previous life in London all I’ll say is that the man is a total bore…and anytime he opens his mouth the world yawns. In fact my recommendation would be to have him speak in the evening across various timezones. Not only would we turn off all the lights and save the world we’d also fall asleep on hearing his monosyllabic platitudes..

So we are climate change deniers, even though the planet has not warmed in 15 years – and 25% of TOTAL man made CO2 has been emitted during this time? Climate change denier = YES, Gullible = NO.

I’ve heard of Earth Hour since it’s launch in 2007, and I live in Singapore….
There were street banners along the main shopping district, 15 second tvcs on cable and free to air and finally press insertions…

I don’t like Mondays either,but i like smug, self satisfied one hit wonders even less.

The lights were turned off on the Empire State Building, but I guess we’re not cool enough for Sir Bob here in NYC

I knew about Earth Hour this year but only by accident (stumbled across a mention in an unrelated newspaper article). In previous years it was well publicised but for some reason not so this year. I think the people behind the campaign need a rethink to get back into the public eye. PS I live in Sydney.

When I was on exchange in Singapore the lights got switched off in the dorms during Earth Hour.

Has a point – comment 8.
Earth Hour was part conceived and owned by Fairfax, but who cares about the truth when you can claim a conspiracy.

Given that the campaign is based upon changing climate through lowering co2 when on any Saturday night generators are all running base load supply it deserves the apathy it gets. For all of you slacktervists who think that turning your lights off for an hour can make any difference…. SUSKED IN!!!!!!!!!!

Great comments all. Especially Suzy Watusi. Except Suzy at least Bono & U2 have some musical talent… Too bad Sir Bob Geldof will never read comments about an article on Mumbrella.

Get Bob on the Gruen Transfer. I want to see how bright Todd really is.

I am a full-time power-bill aware-ist, which is the default position for senior people at home in the UK but I have heard of Earth Hour. I am so in the loop.

I am from Sydney but now live in London, I have participated in Earth Hour every year when I lived in Sydney, but didn’t realise it had already passed this year until I read this article.

Coincidentally, I was telling an English friend about it on Saturday and he had never heard of it. He also laughed because he thought the concept of one hour without lights was hilarious.. He sort of missed the point that it’s more of a gesture, but I suppose it is quite a futile mission if it’s only Australia participating and they only participate for one hour of the year. Not sure how much can really be accomplished, but I still like the sentiment behind the campaign.

Coming from somebody who has worked on Earth Hour’s social media campaign, Earth Hour has grown tremendously since it began in Sydney. In fact the biggest market in terms of involvement is Asia. Our neighbours put Australia to shame in terms of generating awareness amongst the community. Earth Hour is a symbolic gesture to reflect upon how we impact the planet. Earth Hour’s emphasis is going beyond the hour and adopting sustainable practices. Earth Hour’s I Will If You Will campaign challenges you to do something positive for our planet and in return a spokesperson completes a dare. Bob Geldoff do your research.

Oh dear, oh dear Mark. Sometimes the average is a good statistic, sometimes it is a bad one. Anyone who knows anything about climate change knows that the ‘average temperature’ is (as an absolute measure) the bluntest of all instruments. It is also the hallmark of climate change deniers around the world.

Consider the following. I will be deliberately simple for illustrative purposes.

Let’s say that 20 years ago (or even 100 years ago) the average temperature of the earth across a year was 18C. And let’s say that the mimimum was 0C and the maximum was 36C producing an average of 18C..

Now let’s say that last year the average was also 18C. This superficial ‘analysis’ would conclude a ‘no change’ situation. No climate change. No problem.

But what if the dispersion around that average was wider?. What if the minimum was now -2C and the maxium +38C. A bit colder and a bit warmer. Still the same average. Still livable and comfortable enough. But what if the minimum was -5C and the maximum was +41C. Still an average of 18C. Or what if it was -10C and +46C … basically unliveable.

Mark, it is the dispersion around the average that need to be looked at.

Focussing on the average is like the statistician who couldn’t swim and drowned in a lake with the average depth of less than a metre. Sadly when he drowned he was in water over 5 metres deep.

In this month’s Oprah Magazine, there’s a 2 page spread on Earth Hour. That’s ah…rather huge. Just read it by candlelight in the bath last night!

Earth Hour is popular in Malaysia and its well supported by the everyone

@JG you are on the mark.

Climate change deniers, generally have pro waste agenda’s and also, generally appeal to the lowest common denominator; (the greedy, stupid, gullible, moronic etc)

Abbott appeals to these ilk.

The lights will definitely be out for one person come September 14th 2013.
So Bob don’t bother asking her for any monetary commitments.

@JG a worthy attempt, but sadly even a simple and lucid explanation such as yours is beyond the comprehension of a climate change sceptic.

Well if it’s big in Sydney then it must be huge around the globe, afterall the harbour city is the centre of the universe.

I’m not sure if I want EH to be big around the globe, it’s so tokenistic. I’d rather other markets developed their own more profoundly effective initiatives – that are less overly concerned with shiny externals than certain Sydney based agency heroes.

Oh, and to all those who point out that Geldof is a grumpy old fucker (ps hey moderator your report included Geldof swearing) whose music was shite: that’s called an ad hominem attack. As more intelligent posters would know, it means you’re attacking the person and not their argument and it simply shows you up for being … overly concerned with shiny externals.

I was in Singapore for Earth Hour and they knew and turned the light off.

Dont know what Geldoff has been smoking lately. Earth Hour is supported by every corporate In India since 2008.

George if you presume to speak for ‘every corporate in India since 2008’ the indications are you’ve been smoking what Bob’s been smoking.

Does the Guinness book of records have an award for ‘massive ginormous sweeping generalisations that I just made up’?

@Edwina – don’t believe you, post pics.

@marks work for Geldoff? Am just reacting to a generalisation big G made on EH not known outside Sydney. Don’t mind sharing Guinness for that…

Edwina, there’s an Oprah Magazine? And you were reading it?… Why?

WWF stands for the extinction of the human race. They believe that 6 billion people should be wiped from the face of the earth, for the good of the earth.

Rather than work towards progressing technology that helps to provide food, shelter and power for everyone on earth (***evolution of our species***) they suggest that instead we should turn our lights off and go back to the stone age.

Awesome idea guys

Nacho I think it is only you that interprets things that way. But if it extinguished ‘thought’ processes like yours it could be worth it.

Not many outside India know what Holi is all about, or even that it exists. I bet Shrove Tuesday and the frying of pancakes is not widely known internationally either.

Whenever I see Bob Geldof, I can’t help thinking that he needs a good hot shower and a good night’s sleep. I wonder what turning the lights out for an hour actually does for anyone; there are many things, it seems to me, that big companies could do in a direct and positive way to help bring about change in the world.

I am just cynical enough to think that there are many little benefits to be bagged, by organising rallies and instigating button wearing or shows of little expense.

I believe that large profit taking companies could do much more for the world’s crises and to help countries such as Africa to progress with dignity.