A symbol for climate protection: around the world, the lights in apartments and famous buildings were switched off for an hour on Saturday evening. In Germany, the Brandenburg Gate was in the dark for an hour from 8:30 p.m. With the "Earth Hour" the environmental foundation WWF sets an example for more climate protection every year.
Numerous cities in more than 100 countries worldwide took part in the 17th "Earth Hour" under the motto "Together for more climate protection". According to the WWF, more than 550 cities in Germany had registered for the campaign, which started at 8:30 p.m. local time.
Unlike in previous years, the lights at some of the sights were no longer on anyway - partly as a result of the energy crisis. The State Ministry in Baden-Württemberg pointed out that the state had reduced lighting as much as possible since the summer in view of the war in Ukraine as a contribution to saving energy.
Hours before the start of the action in Germany, the lights had long gone out elsewhere. In New Zealand, the Sky Tower observation and telecommunications tower and the Harbor Bridge in Auckland were in darkness, in Sydney, Australia, the Harbor Bridge and the Opera House. In Malaysia, the lights of Kuala Lumpur's Petronas Towers - once the world's tallest buildings - went out for an hour.
Russia is not there
Russia was not there this time, the lights on public buildings there stayed on. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov justified this in advance by saying that the WWF, as the initiator, is now on the Russian list of "foreign agents". "Foreign agents" are often accused of divisive activities in Russia. The country had previously taken part in the campaign since 2013 and, among other things, switched off the facade lighting at the Kremlin, Russia's center of power.
The WWF launched the global climate and environmental protection campaign in Australia in 2007 - as a sign that humanity must take better care of the earth. In addition to cities and authorities, companies and private individuals can also take part in the campaign.
"Earth Hour is not about saving energy by turning off lights," WWF explained. Rather, the "Earth Hour" is a symbolic and peaceful protest action. "Forest fires, droughts and floods in 2022 have once again shown us the dramatic effects of the climate crisis," said the WWF. "This decade will decide whether we can still limit the climate crisis to a manageable level."
WWF zu Earth Hour Earth Hour
