Going Byond: Earth Hour 2011

Saturday 2 April 2011

Earth Hour 2011

Last weekend 134 countries joined together to celebrate Earth Hour 2011 - surpassing last year's record 128 countries. This year the focus was "going beyond the hour" and thinking about what else you can do to make a difference.

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million individuals and more than 2,000 businesses turned their lights off for one hour to take a stand against climate change. Only a year later and Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries/territories participating.

This statement was released the day after Earth Hour 2011. To read the full article please go to http://www.earthhour.org/mediasite/globalPressRelease.aspx

"More than lights-out: Earth Hour success shows world ready to go Beyond the Hour

As the lights come back on in the Cook Islands, the 134th country to celebrate Earth Hour 2011 – a record breaking year for the annual lights-out event – the global community has shown it is united in commitment to a sustainable future.

Around the world, Earth Hour was embraced by the global community, transcending race, culture, age and economics as individuals took leadership in their communities in the pursuit of a cleaner and safer planet. In 2011, Earth Hour asked the hundreds of millions of people taking part in the one hour switch-off to take the next step and go beyond the hour, using Earth Hour to commit to ongoing action for the planet.

“The Beyond the Hour call to action has been unanimously answered by people worldwide,” said Andy Ridley, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Earth Hour. “From school children in Singapore, to Heads of State from the UK, to Australia, Pakistan and Colombia, people have shown that Earth Hour has evolved beyond lights-out. “This year’s event has illustrated without question what can be achieved when people unite with a common purpose and rally to action.”

...Hundreds of millions in thousands of cities, towns and communities in a record 134 countries were expected to have participated by the time the lights out and pledge action beyond the hour completes its passage from New Zealand on one side of the International Date Line to former New Zealand dependency the Cook Islands on the other.

Brazil set its own record with 124 cities taking part this year compared to the still creditable 98 of 2010. This included around two-thirds of the state capitals and coverage across all five Brazilian regions. More cities and towns are likely to reveal Earth Hour activities in the coming days".

I have put together a gallery of photos and images relating to Earth Hour 2011. I hope you enjoy them - and please contact me if you participated in Earth Hour 2011 and have photos of how you celebrated this event.