Hackney,
29
March
2019
|
15:37
Europe/London

Council to mark Earth Hour with Town Hall switch-off

This Saturday, Hackney Council will switch off its lights for one hour in solidarity with people across the globe fighting human-induced global warming, and the people already living with its increasingly severe impacts.

Hackney Town Hall will join landmarks across the world, including Sydney Opera House, the Eiffel Tower and the Empire State Building, in marking Earth Hour, and will be plunged into darkness to highlight the urgency of taking action on man-made global warming and climate change.

Despite the increasingly dire warnings of climate scientists - most recently in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's 1.5C report - that failure to drastically reduce the emissions driving global warming will significantly increase the risks of drought, floods, extreme heat, and poverty for hundreds of millions of people, with profound geopolitical consequences all, greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise.

In the face of these warnings, Earth Hour is an important symbolic demonstration of the power of collective action and shows what can be achieved when people decide to take worldwide, co-ordinate steps to address a problem.

Earth Hour is also much more than a symbolic event, having already helped to influence climate policy in Russia, Argentina, Ecuador, and Wales; successfully drive ambitious environmental laws, such as a ban on plastic in the Galapagos Islands; and inspire the world’s first Earth Hour protected forest in Uganda.

Last year, over 10 million people across the UK took part in Earth Hour, and the Council is urging residents and businesses to join in once again, to magnify calls for radical action to drastically slow down global warming.

Cllr Jon Burke, Cabinet Member for Energy, Sustainability, & Community Services
Earth Hour is an incredibly important event, in which millions of people worldwide send the message that collective action to significantly reduce the emissions driving global warming is possible. As well as the Town Hall, my family and I will be switching-off for Earth Hour, and I’d urge residents and businesses to show solidarity with children across the world striking for their future and environmentalists of all ages, by joining us in the fight against global warming.

As part of a wide range of measures to tackle climate change, the Council is introducing a publicly-owned, energy company, which will provide good value, renewable energy to help drive the introduction of renewable energy infrastructure in Hackney and beyond, and as part of our journey to 100% renewable energy across the Council's full range of functions, we’re also transforming the way we purchase our energy, with 50% of our electricity coming from clean sources as of 1 April 2019.
Cllr Jon Burke, Cabinet Member for Energy, Sustainability, & Community Services

Everyone can join the celebration of WWF’s Earth Hour on Saturday 24 March 2018. For more information and to sign up, please visit www.wwf.org.uk/earthhour. You can also spread the word on social media by using #EarthhourUK to show your support.

The Council will switch off lights at Hackney Town Hall and Town Hall Square at 8.30pm this Saturday 30 March.