0.1
March 12, 2008

Lighthouse Solar.

For video, click here.

Most of us don’t even think of daylight saving time anymore (our cell phones and computers change automatically)—except maybe as an excuse to show up for work an hour late. But back in the day—before global warming was detected, or television was even invented—daylight saving was probably the world’s first major effort to conserve energy. Did you know: during World War I, the Allies convinced every single person in America and Britain to manually change their clocks to save electricity and energy for the war effort. Nowadays, when taxing corporations on their carbon emissions, or signing something like the Kyoto Accord is too much of a stretch for our leadership, daylight savings is proof that people will put up with a little inconvenience for a cause they believe in, especially if everyone else does it too. Facing the reality of global warming and the swift consumption of natural resources, we’ve all got to take whatever small actions we can—break out the Victory Gardens!—to keep our planet from cooking us. Where to start? Check out a few of our favorite websites and organizations below—and put that extra hour of daylight to good use.

I had three cups of maté yesterday—replacing my lost hour of sleep with caffeine and sugar—but it’s a price I’ll gladly pay to go hiking in the sunshine after work. Right now, the good folks at Lighthouse Solar are erecting a two-way solar canopy (the cells absorb sunlight from both the top and bottom) made from recycled metal—and a deck from ReSourced wood—in Waylon’s backyard, so we’ll be able to work on our laptops outside this Summer. But until then, while I wait out the tail-end of Winter wrapped in a flannel Pendleton blanket, I’ll find motivation and entertainment in moments like last Wednesday’s interview with Dr. Sha, who (almost) succeeded in rendering Waylon speechless for an entire 20 minutes. Enjoy! ~ele ed. Heather Mueller

Leave a Thoughtful Comment
X

Read 0 comments and reply

Top Contributors Latest

elephantjournal dotcom  |  Contribution: 45,420