There was an interesting experiment conducted on the island of Kauai last weekend.
Like all the rest of their island neighbors, Garden Isle residents rely on electricity in their every day lives - but for one day, Blue Planet Foundation asked that they "power Down Kauai."
Kauai residents were asked to shut their power down "for one day - test it out, see how it works." Blue Planet wanted to know, "how can we really get people to think about where our electricity comes from and what their life would be without it," said Ivory McClintock, of the Blue Planet Foundation.
Blue Planet Foundation offered alternatives in the North Shore community of Hanalei.
"So some of the things that we tried to do is just really encourage people to be outside, play outdoors, play with your community and look at what are other things you can try to do besides play on your X-box or watch TV," Ivory said.
Ivory has a vested interest in the outcome of the experiment. The Kauai island native remembers the days after Hurricane Iniki.
"It really reminded me of '92 when, after Hurricane Iniki, that's all we had - we had board games, we talked to our neighbors, we went back to what the community really looked at - we really don't have to use electricity. So it was kind of a fun way for the community to come together, but also give them perspective on how much we use electricity in every day life."
Ivory says this is a collaborative effort.
"And I should mention that Jonathon Jay is the coordinator of this event on the island of Kauai as part of P2PKauai.org. So they've been organizing this and trying to get people from all over the island to participate."
And she stresses, this is not a one time only event.
"This is just the beginning. We're trying to look at it every month, every second of the month, to just keep doing this, but across the island. First was North Shore, but there are other groups around the island that are doing this as well."
