Fold a paper crane to show your support for a healthy planet

In Japan, the crane is a mystical creature and is believed to live for a thousand years. As a result, in the Japanese, Chinese and Korean culture, the crane represents good fortune and longevity.

Many Japanese people make origami cranes. The Japanese word, ‘origami’ is a combination of two words in Japanese: ‘ori’ which means ‘to fold’ and ‘kami’ which means ‘paper.’ It is believed that Japanese origami began in the 6th century and because of the high costs of paper, origami was only used for religious ceremonial purposes.

Traditionally, it was believed that if one folded 1,000 origami cranes, one’s wish would come true. It has also become a symbol of hope and healing during challenging times. As a result, it has become popular to fold 1,000 cranes (in Japanese, called ‘senbazuru’). The cranes are strung together on strings and given as gifts.

Earth Hour is a global activity and Head4Arts wanted to do something which reflected its connection with the rest of the world. We are hope that, by doing joining in with Earth Hour, we will help the good fortune and longevity of the planet.

Switching the lights off for an hour is a symbolic act to show our concern about climate change. We at Head4Arts will be asking people to go a step further: to make a personal pledge to change one thing that could help reduce climate change. We are asking people to write that pledge on each crane that they fold.
To get involved, put 30th March in your diary and come to your nearest event: Parc Bryn Bach, Blaenavon World Heritage Centre, Cyfarthfa Park or Parc Penallta. Times and locations are on this website. Or you could get making your cranes at home – recycled paper only! Watch this short video to see how the origami is done.

With thanks to the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre for information on cranes.