Switching on

Analysts have been keen to point at Chinas failure in honouring the Kyoto protocol: in an unprecedented move,Chinas skyscrapers,which the government views as symbols of affluence and power,were for an hour invisible. This raises one very simple question,whys China central to this? The attempt to push states into meeting international requirements made China very nervous; it argued that given the nature of economic development,the countries of the West which started industrialising in 1870 should be the ones to shoulder a larger proportion of the burden. Simply put,the Chinese state found international policies unfair,and refused to clean up its act.

Many will claim and have claimed that Earth Hour in nothing more than an advertising campaign,a ploy to get people to tune in. This may be the case; but harnessing international support like that is hardly new,and people,after all,can and should be capable of swaying government policies and directives. This is what Earth Hour attempts. But it has brought to light one important fact of relations between states: governments may dishonour commitments when it comes to other states judging their actions,but when their own people are concerned they will be forced to participate.