Saturday, March 26, 2011

Earth Hour 2011 Malaysia

Earth Hour 2011

March 19, 2011 at 2:00 pm
Every year, on the last Saturday in the month of March, people all over the world turn off their non-essential lights at home or in their office for one hour. This event is known as the Earth Hour. It all began in the year 2004 when World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Australia began to look into methods to address the problem of climate change. An idea was born in 2005 and WWF Australia together with Leo Burnett started working on an idea of a large scale switch off. When Al Gore’s movie ‘The Inconvenient Truth’ was released in 2006, it further reinforced the drastic consequences of climate change should the public continue to ignore its threats.

The first Earth Hour campaign was launched in 2007 in Sydney, Australia on the 31st March 2007. A total of 2.2 million Sydneysiders and 2,100 businesses participated in this opening campaign. Soon, many people around the world are beginning to show interest in participating the next Earth Hour. In 2008, Earth Hour was held on an international level on 28th March 2008 for one hour, from 8.00 pm till 9.00 pm. 35 countries from around the world participated in this event, with over 400 cities also supporting them. Famous landmarks like the Empire State Building in New York City, United States, The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, United States, Space Needle in Seattle, United States, the Colosseum in Rome, Italy, London’s City Hall and our very own Petronas Towers and KL Tower turned off all non-essential lights for one hour on that day. The Earth Hour celebration in 2009 saw an increase in the number of countries and cities participating, a total of 88 countries and 4,159 cities from all over the world. The biggest Earth Hour event was held in 2010, seeing a total of 128 participating countries compared to the previous year.
Nashville, Tennessee during Earth Hour 2009
This year, Earth Hour will be held on the 26th of March from 8.30 pm till 9.30 pm (local time) internationally. Not wanting to miss out on a chance to protect and preserve the environment, Shangri-La’s Rasa Sayang Resort and Spa, and Golden Sands Resort by Shangri-La Penang will also be participating in this year’s Earth Hour Malaysia’s initiative. These two resorts have pledged to dim all non-essential lighting in guestroom corridors, select resort and staff areas as well as exterior lighting of both resorts as an effort to fight global warming. Guests of these resorts are encouraged to participate by turning off the lights in their rooms.
Shangri-La’s Rasa Sayang Resort and Spa have also lined up a host of interesting energy-saving activities at its dining outlets in line with efforts to increase awareness and participation. The Pinang Bar will be offering a special night screening of an environment feature whilst special Earth Hour mocktails will be available all day long at all dining outlets. Guests can also enjoy a romantic candlelight dinner at the Feringgi Grill, Spice Market Cafe or the Pinang Restaurant & Bar.
Shangri-La's Rasa Sayang Resort, Penang
Over at the Golden Sands Resort, the grounds and gardens will be lighted up with energy-saving parasol lighting whilst its main dining outlet Sigi’s Bar & Grill on the Beach will run on partial lighting and air-conditioning. Diners can also savour delicious and mouth-watering dishes cooked hungi style – a New Zealand Maori tradition of cooking reserved for special occasions, where packets of meat and vegetables are in banana leaves and infused with herbs and then buried in the ground to cook slowly. These packets of delights are sure to bring diners to new heights in tastes and aromas.
So note down this 26th March 2011 and do not be surprised if the lights go out at 8:30 pm. Better yet, be one of the many people all over the world who will flip a switch to help this earth we live in, for just one hour. For more information on Earth Hour, log on to http://www.earthhour.org/

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