EARTH HOUR WORLD INITIATIVE

Hundreds of millions of people around the world will switch off lights for one hour on 27 March 2010 (Saturday) at 8 p.m. as a symbolic gesture that it is high time we adopted serious actions against climate changes. Bulgaria will also take part in the initiative. Some of the most familiar world symbols of hope, peace, human achievements and natural wonders will sink into darkness as a clear message of the common efforts in the fight against one of the biggest world problems. Sofia is the first Bulgarian city which has confirmed its participation in the Earth Hour initiative organized by WWF and more towns are expected to joint in.

Four of the five highest buildings in the world will be engulfed in darkness on 27 March 2010 – the 800 meters high Burj Khalifa in the UAE, CN Tower in Toronto, Taipei 101 in Taipei and Willis (Sears) Tower in Chicago. They will be joined by Table Mountain overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa, the Grand Palace in Bangkok, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, the Empire State Building in New York City and Mount Rushmore National Memorial in the USA. Hiroshima Peace Memorial in Japan will also join the initiative. The London Eye high wheel in London and the Piccadilly Circus ad of Coca-Cola will also go off for the hour. Earth Hour began in one single city – Sidney, Australia, in 2007 and in 2009 more than 4189 towns in 88 countries, including 42 Bulgarian ones took part in the initiative. The lights of emblematic buildings such as the Egyptian Pyramids, the Eiffel Tower, the Coliseums, the Statue of Jesus the Saviour in Rio de Janeiro, the Buckingham Palace and the Olympic Stadium in Beijing died out for one hour last year.