Typically, people and city managers switch off their lights for the hour in a symbolic call to global leaders to make smart decisions about dealing with climate change. The 2015 Earth Hour campaign calls on South Africans to use the power of individual voices to join the international movement to stem the tide of climate change.
"On the night of 28 March during Earth Hour, many South Africans will be marking the symbolic hour of darkness to highlight issues around the climate crisis - and we will be supporting them," says Morné du Plessis, CEO of WWF SA.
This is a significant year as world leaders gather in Paris in December for COP 21 to make global commitments towards reducing our reliance on fossil fuel. The Paris meeting pre-empts the end of the Kyoto Protocol, which is due to expire in 2020, and will introduce the beginnings of a new international protocol that will embrace, for the first time, all nations.
Several South African local authorities have also signed up to take part in the Earth Hour City Challenge which saw Cape Town emerge a global winner in 2014 for its environmental efforts to reduce its energy footprint.
Go to www.earthhour.org.za for more info.
