Skyscrapers, malls and homes to 'switch off' for Earth Hour

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-03-28 19:56

BEIJING -- Skyscrapers with glowing windows dominating the night skyline are usually considered symbols of affluence and modernization in China. But Saturday night, many will go dark voluntarily.

About 20 Chinese cities have joined a global campaign to persuade the public to switch off unnecessary lights for one hour to show concern over global warming and climate change issues.

Iconic city buildings such as the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium in Beijing and the "Oriental Pearl" tower in Shanghai, usually illuminated by high-powered floodlights, will go dim from 8:30 p.m. (1230 GMT) to 9:30 p.m. (1330 GMT), according to organizers of the campaign "Earth Hour", the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

Tens of thousands of Chinese are expected to either turn off lights and appliances at home, or join activities such as candle-lit dinners and star-gazing parties as a response to the call for "going dark," said Zhuang Shiguan, spokeswoman with the WWF China office.

The "Bird's Nest" and "Water Cube" National Aquatics Center in northern Beijing will join dozens of hotels, office buildings and shopping malls in the capital as they turn their floodlights off, she said.

In Shanghai, China's financial hub, the world's third-tallest TV tower "Oriental Pearl" and the 101-story World Financial Center will also go dark.

About 80 skyscrapers in Hong Kong, Nanjing, Dalian and Shunde have promised to dim unnecessary lights at the same time, Zhuang said.

"The enthusiasm of Chinese individuals and governments has been overwhelming, although this is the first year for China to hold Earth Hour activities," Dermot O'Gorman, WWF China Country Representative, told Xinhua.

"This will send an important message to the world that people in China are becoming more aware of climate change issues," he said.

Initiated in Australia in 2007, Earth Hour is a time zone-by-time zone plan in which people around the world are encouraged to switch off their lights for 60 minutes to show their concern about global warming.

About 3,000 cities in more than 80 countries and regions will join this year's campaign, compared with 34 countries last year, according to the website of WWF (www.wwfchina.org).