We've all seen the cartoon depiction of a bright idea in the form of a light bulb over a person's head. But what if the bright idea was the light bulb itself?

Councilman Robert Bailey (left) and Buffalo FOD Steve Banko discuss the merits of energy efficiency with Colleen Dunlap at the Elmira NY observance of "Change a Light, Change the World" Day.

That's the question the city administration in Elmira NY asked itself recently and the answer was found in the city's participation in the national "Change a Light; Change the World" program to convince people to switch from incandescent light bulbs to the vastly more energy efficient compact fluorescent (CF) bulbs. So working with Home Depot, Community Development Director Cheryl Box and her assistant Kelly Ramsdell actually stimulated the change they sought by distributing free CF light bulbs outside their City Hall office.

Information provided by Energy Star indicates that if every household in the United States changed just one light bulb from incandescent to compact fluorescent pollution in the nation would be reduced by an amount equivalent to the removal of one million cars from American highways.

Ms. Box and Ms. Ramsdell also focused media attention on Elmira's efforts by bringing a CF light bulb to Ms. Colleen Dunlop who purchased her home through Elmira's first time homebuyer program. The activity is a collaborative program, jointly administered by the City of Elmira and Catholic Charities of the Southern Tier.

Buffalo Field Office Director Steve Banko traveled to Elmira to be part of the observance and was joined at the Dunlop home by Elmira Councilman Robert Bailey.