SU, SUNY-ESF to participate in Earth Hour global event

SU, SUNY-ESF to participate in Earth Hour global eventMarch 27, 2008Sara Millersemortim@syr.edu

Saturday, March 29, Syracuse University and the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF) will join cities, universities and businesses around the world as participants in Earth Hour. For one hour, starting at 8 p.m., the clock tower on SU’s Hall of Languages will go dark as a symbol of the universities’ participation. Students in residence halls and campus apartments will be asked to minimize their use of electricity. Even participants in the Relay for Life, an annual cancer research event in the Carrier Dome, will complete an Earth Lap to participate in Earth Hour.

Last year on March 31, for one hour, Sydney, Australia, made a powerful statement about the greatest contributor to global warming, coal-fired electricity, when more than 2.2 million Sydney residents and more than 2,100 businesses switched off the lights, leading to a 10.2 percent energy reduction across the city. What began as one city taking a stand against global warming has now caught the attention of the world.

On March 29, 24 global cities will participate in Earth Hour, coordinated by the World Wide Fund for Nature, as the highlight of a major campaign to encourage businesses, communities and individuals to take the simple steps needed to cut their emissions on an ongoing basis — such as businesses turning off their lights when their offices are empty and households turning off appliances rather than leaving them on standby.

For more information about Earth Hour, visit http://www.earthhour.org; to learn more about the comprehensive sustainability efforts at SU and SUNY-ESF, visit http://greenuniversecity.syr.edu and http://www.esf.edu/greencampus.