Calling all Earthlings!

If you have not heard of the Earth Hour initiative then u all are soo not IN okay!

Thank God you have me! :)

As a socially responsible corporate citizen who had just attended a CSR conference and is genuinely worried about global warming I think I should do my bit to promote a good cause.

From melting glaciers to increasingly intense weather patterns, we know that climate change is already impacting life on our planet. So, on Saturday, March 28, 2009, at 8:30 pm, people and organizations worldwide are taking part in Earth Hour—the world’s largest global climate change event.

Switching off your lights is a vote for earth, or leaving them on is a vote for global warming. WWF are urging the world to VOTE EARTH and reach the target of 1 billion votes, which will be presented to world leaders at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen 2009. This meeting will determine official government policies to take action against global warming, which will replace the Kyoto Protocol. It is the chance for the people of the world to make their voice heard.

Led by the World Wildlife Fund, more than 50 million people in 370 cities around the world took part in Earth Hour last year. The lights went out at Sydney’s Opera House, Rome’s Coliseum, the Empire State Building and the Golden Gate Bridge. Even the Google homepage went dark for the day. This year, Earth Hour will be even bigger.

In Malaysia, cities large and small have said they’ll participate including with more signing up daily. These cities will join international cities such as Beijing, Cape Town, Copenhagen, Edinburgh, Helsinki, Hong Kong, London, Manila, Mexico City, Moscow, New York, Paris, Rome, and Toronto. (Of course, the joke during the conference was that kalau kat Malaysia WWF should get T*B to just switch off the power and do their CSR bit for the nation..har..har..har..)

To get a better sense of the magnitude and inspiring nature of the event, take a moment to watch WWF’s video about Earth Hour 2009 by visiting www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjWD8pbK5t8.

Even B*N has made a pledge to be part of the event. We will be shutting down all the lights at our HQ and main branches. Of course as a Bank, we can't be in total darkness (ATMs would still be lighted) because then all the crooks in town will have one helluva party at our premises. The robbers would probably have their own "Operasi Earth Hour".

Energy efficiency isn’t just good for the bottom line. As citizens of the world, we all have a stake in the future of our planet and must seek to operate in ways that don’t deplete our world’s limited natural resources.

Participating in Earth Hour is easy, fun and absolutely free. To get more information and to sign up to for Earth Hour 2009, just visit www.earthhour.org and agree to turn out your lights from 8:30-9:30 pm on March 28, 2009. From there on you can think of many many many things that you can do for one hour in the dark! ;)

Let's vote for earth, y'all!