Earth Hour 2010 a global call to action

Earth Hour 2010 took place last night at 8.30pm (local time) and was a global call to action to every individual, every business and every community throughout the world.

It was a call to stand up, to take responsibility, to get involved and lead the way towards a sustainable future.

Iconic buildings and landmarks stood in darkness from the Indo-Pacific to Australasia, to Asia and Europe to the Americas. People across the world from all walks of life turned off their lights and joined together in celebration and contemplation of the one thing we all have in common – our planet.

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million homes and businesses turned their lights off for one hour to make their stand against climate change. Only a year later Earth Hour become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries participating.

Global landmarks such as the, Sydney Harbour Bridge, The CN Tower in Toronto, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and Rome’s Coliseum all stood in darkness, as symbols of hope for a cause that grows more urgent by the hour.

In one of Earth Hour’s most visually powerful displays of climate action, the world’s tallest building, Dubai’s Burj Khailfa, flicked the switch from top to bottom – all 828 metres – along with other landmarks and icons including the Bujr Al Arab, Abu Dhabi Mosque and Emirates Palace.

The Maldives carried Earth Hour across the Indian Ocean last night. Rather than just turning the lights off for an hour at 8:30, as with much of the rest of the world, the Maldives went several steps further to spread the message on climate change: an enforced road closure took place Male’ wide at 4pm, remaining so until midnight.

This year “the road closure was better enforced” as “the Ministry of Transport called for an Rf750 (US$58) fine for any unapproved vehicles, in addition to a deduction of 15 points for any vehicles in violation,” says Zaha Waheed of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Awareness spread to local schools and environmental groups too.

“The Minister and deputy Minister of Environment, the Minister of Tourism, the Maldives National Defence Force, state dignitaries and staff of the Environmental Protection Agency attended a walk with around 500 students from four schools in Male’,” says Environmental Protection and Research Director, Ibrahim Naeem.

This walk was to “spread awareness for the environmental issues of the world, particularly climate change and energy consumption” he said.

Maldives resorts and hotels also played their part in raising awareness for climate change, with Male’s Holiday Inn stopping the generator and hosting a candle lit gathering with music from a local acoustic musician in the city’s highest venue, ‘Azure’.

People filled the rooftop terrace to witness the spectacle of Male’ carrying the momentum of Earth Hour across the Indian Ocean.

Shangri-La’s Villingili Resort and Spa, offered guests an organic moonlit massage using virgin coconut oil produced by a local community, Bandos Island Resort and Spa “sent awareness information to all guests and cut the whole island’s electricity for an hour,” says Zaina from the resort’s marketing department, along with many other sisland resorts which joined forces to spread the Earth Hour message across the atolls.

Kate Wilson is a marine biologist with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).