Dubai to dim lights for Earth Hour

Thousands of lights across Dubai will go out for one hour later this month as the city joins the “largest voluntary power down in history” in the fight against global climate change.

Individuals and businesses will turn of non-essential lights and appliances for one hour between 8.00pm to 9.00pm on Saturday March 29 to show how people can make a difference to climate change.

Earth Hour, the brainchild of the WWF which began in Sydney, Australia in 2007, aims to traverse more than 25 cities across 14 time zones.

Action includes turning off mobile phone chargers when not in use, switching off TV or CD players at the wall rather than leaving it on standby, extinguishing unused lights and shutting down office and home computers.

Dubai Holding and the Dubai Water and Electricity Authority (Dewa) will front the initiative, which is supported by Dubai Municipality, Dubai International Financial Centre, the Roads & Transport Authority (RTA), Dubai World Trade Centre, Nakheel, Emaar and advertising agency Leo Burnett.

"We are asking everyone in Dubai to switch off all non-essential lights for one hour, at 8.00pm on March 29, to send a message around the world that we have the power to take action against global warming and that by working together we really can make a huge difference," said Fadel Ali, Executive Chairman Dubai Holding Operations.

"Earth Hour will clearly demonstrate the connection between energy usage and climate change, showing that we as a broader community can address the biggest threat our planet has ever faced."