Last Saturday, on 8:30 pm, the world went dark in celebration of Earth Hour, with households, communities, and businesses in 190 countries turning off their lights in a symbolic call to climate action. Although it was originally intended as a yearly lights-out event, Earth Hour is now a vibrant grassroots movement that has fully integrated into the online activism ecosystem. Needless to say, the internet’s role in this was transformative: this year alone, #EarthHour and relevant hashtags appeared more than 3 billion times on social media, and numerous activities were held digitally in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. WWF even took advantage of Earth Hour’s online popularity to collect signatures for its petition for habitat conservation, “Voice for the Planet”.

For many, the annual hour-long blackout is a chance for introspection - a time to consider the extent and impact of their energy consumption, and to research ways of limiting it. Although the significance of household use is debatable in the face of supply chain electricity consumption, it is easy to predict that there is going to be an upsurge in the former now that a lot of us are under quarantine in our homes. 

Even though it is impossible to find proof of a spike in household consumption during the coronavirus outbreak at the moment, the 2020 Earth Hour is an excellent opportunity to review our overall usage in the last decade. For example, EU member states saw a mere 0.1% increase in residential electricity consumption between 2007 and 2017. However, that average can be deceptive: a cursory search on Eurostat’s database reveals that some countries saw an increase upwards of 21%, while others reduced their use of electricity by more than 17%. This is no wonder; countries like Portugal have been showcasing exemplary use of renewable energy sources, especially to cover their domestic energy needs. 

While the state of affairs in Europe might give grounds for optimism, the greater picture is less rosy. According to the 2019 Global Energy Statistical Yearbook, the average worldwide rate of power consumption went up by 3.5% in 2018. Albeit that can be partially attributed to the residential sector, as in the case American households, the available data point in a different direction.

2010 was the last year the United States were at the top of the electricity consumption list. The country that contributed the most for the rest of the decade was China, starting from 4,052 TWh (TerraWatt hours) in 2011 and growing to 6,167 TWh in 2018. It can be argued that this was caused by the country’s rapid population growth in that timeframe, but that doesn’t seem to be the case: China is the world's largest manufacturing economy, and that is reflected in its increased power consumption. It is also worth mentioning that China is a primary target for foreign investment, with industry giants outsourcing their production - and by extension, their use of electric energy - to the country’s workforce.

World map of Electricity Consumption in 2018 - Global Energy Statistical Yearbook 2019

As worrisome as these statistics are, the future looks promising. The optimisation of renewable energy technologies and the dramatic drop in development costs for solar and wind projects have redefined the energy landscape. Progress is slow, but steady: in 2018, the share of renewables in the total power mix was 26%, with Norway contributing the highest percentage in renewable electricity production, followed closely by Brazil. 

A great part of the current environmental crisis can be traced back to the way we produce and consume energy. This Earth Hour, with the effects of climate change and the loss of biodiversity growing more apparent than ever, it is time to investigate accountability throughout all levels of the electricity supply chain. As end users of a product with tangible repercussions on our ecosystems, we are in a position to demand transparency, green practices, and thoughtful leadership - and we have access to platforms that can ensure that our voices are being heard.

Citations:

1. "Our Mission", earthhour.org, updated Mar. 29, 2020

2. "Electricity production, consumption, and market overview", Eurostat, June 2019

3. Filipe Lobo d’Avila, Pedro Saldanha, "Renewable energy in Portugal",
Rödl & Partner, Feb. 3, 2020

4. "Electricity Domestic Consumption", Global Energy Statistical Yearbook 2019

5. "Share of Renewables in Electricity Production", Global Energy Statistical Yearbook 2019

Photo by Federico Beccari on Unsplash