On Saturday, March 29th, 2008 at 8 pm local time, many businesses and individuals from around the world are going to participate in Earth Hour. If you're wondering what Earth Hour is, it's an energy conservation awareness event that began in Australia in 2007. For one hour, people turn off their lights and non-essential electronics in order to raise awareness about saving energy and lowering carbon emissions. The event is sponsored by the World Wildlife Fund.
One particular city that has received attention for its upcoming participation in Earth Hour is Phoenix, Arizona, which will reportedly turn off all the lights for the city-run buildings downtown. Shutting the downtown lights off for a large city seems to be quite the ordeal. "It sounds easy, but its kind of sticky, when you're talking about big, tall buildings, ball parks and convention centers," commented Leslie Aun, a World Wildlife Fund representative. "There's a whole electrical system that really isn't designed to be turned on or off. So to actually pick a specific time in the day and have all of these buildings go off at the same time is quite a logistical challenge."
Millions of people around the world will be participating in Earth Hour on Saturday, March 29th. To find out how you can help be a part of history, read more at Earth Hour. Likewise, AZCentral has more details about Phoenix and its participation.
