If you see lights going off on 28
March at 20:30, do not be alarmed. It is not a
black-out. It is in fact the citizens of Cape Town
showing their support for a global call to switch off
their lights for an hour from 20:30 to 21:30 in a
symbolic stance against global warming.
The World Wildlife Fund started the
event in 2007 in Sydney, with 2.2 million people and
thousands of businesses going dark. The next year, more
than 400 cities on all seven continents participated.
Some high-wattage landmarks even got involved, including
the Sydney Opera House and, in New York, the Coke
billboard in Times Square and the Empire State Building.
At present, nearly 1.200 cities in 80
countries have signed up. Group organisers aim for 1
billion people to switch off their lights, an
achievement they hope to present at the United Nations
Climate Change Conference, to be held in Copenhagen this
year.
Sign up at
www.earthhour.org.za
