Did you shut off some lights for an hour on Saturday, in honor of Earth Hour, an annual event that shows support of action against global warming? Millions of people in a record 134 countries—as well as many famous landmarks—switched off lights Saturday, March 26, from 8:30-9:30 pm, local time.
Landmarks that went dark or mostly dark included the Empire State Building in New York City, Niagara Falls, Christ the Redeemer Statue in Rio de Janeiro, Machu Pichu, Istanbul’s Bosphorus Bridge, and the Las Vegas Strip.
The world famous Caesar’s hotel and casino turned off its lights not only in Las Vegas, but in 40 of it worldwide locations.
Go to see the lights actually dim when you click on the photos. It’s very cool to see landmarks and city lights go dark.
Not Too Late to Take Part
No harm if you didn’t shut off a light or two. And if you still want to do something, you can take a pledge of sorts to do something to help the Earth at Beyond the Hour.
I’d like to see the Earth Hour organizers WWF (World Wildlife Fund) pledge to try to measure the energy savings that results from shutting off so many lights just for one hour. Earth Hour is largely a symbolic event, and the organizers don’t measure the energy savings, but an estimate on savings could convince many more people what can happen just by shutting off unneeded lights, whether in our homes or businesses.
I know that even estimating how many lights were shut off will be difficult, but there’s got to be a way to get a ballpark estimate.
Earth Hour has grown exponentially since it began in 2007 with about two million participants in Australia. But it could grow even more if organizers would consider the energy savings effect. After all, energy efficiency and conservation are the most effective ways to battle global warming.
Hong Kong before Earth Hour
Hong Kong After Earth Hour
London Before Earth Hour
London After Earth Hour
Photo Credits:
Hong Kong pics: Photos (c) Adam Minu
London Bridge and City hall: Photos (c) Richard Stonehouse