On March 28th at 8:30pm local time, cities across the globe will participate in Earth Hour by turning off their lights for one hour.  More than 1,500 cities around the globe have committed to taking the measure to highlight worries about climate change.  U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has asked for support for the endeavor saying,”It promises to be largest demonstration of public concern about climate change ever attempted.”

Organized by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), last year’s event saw an estimated 50 million people worldwide participate.  Organizers hope for a much more significant event this year with a goal of 1 billion as a way to ‘send a strong message to our political leaders that we want them to take meaningful action on climate change.’

Acknowledging that the event will not do anything to decrease the world’s carbon footprint, the WWF likens it to other symbolic events such as the Boston Tea Party or the protests of the 1960’s.

I urge citizens everywhere to join us.  We are on a dangerous path, the planet is warming and we must change our ways.
– U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

Berlin, Beijing, Copenhagen, Dubai, Hong Kong, London, Mexico City, Moscow, Paris, Sydney and Toronto are some of the international cities that have committed to participate.  Here in the United States many major cities have agreed to turn their lights out including Albuquerque, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York, Washington D.C. and more.

Colorado as well has six cities participating including Boulder, Commerce City, Denver, Fort Collins, Silverthorne, and Westminster.  Denver will darken four public buildings:  the Wellington Webb Building, the City and County Building, the Human Services Building on Federal Boulevard and the McNichols Building.

For more information, visit Earth Hour’s website here:  http://www.earthhourus.org