earth hour 2009

Sydney first major city to mark Earth Hour 2009

The floodlit cream shells of the famed Opera House dimmed Saturday as Sydney became the world's first major city to plunge itself into darkness for the second worldwide Earth Hour, a global campaign to highlight the threat of climate change.

From the Great Pyramids to the Acropolis, the London Eye to the Las Vegas strip, nearly 4,000 cities and towns in 88 countries planned to join in the World Wildlife Fund-sponsored event, a time zone-by-time zone plan to dim nonessential lights between 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

Involvement in the effort has exploded since last year's Earth Hour, which drew participation from 400 cities after Sydney held a solo event in 2007. Interest has spiked ahead of planned negotiations on a new global warming treaty in Copenhagen, Denmark, this December. The last global accord, the Kyoto Protocol, is set to expire in 2012.

Despite the boost in interest from the Copenhagen negotiations, organizers initially worried enthusiasm for this year's event would wane with the world's attention focused largely on the global economic crisis, Earth Hour executive director Andy Ridley told The Associated Press. Strangely enough, he said, it's seemed to have the opposite effect.

"Earth Hour has always been a positive campaign; it's always around street parties, not street protests, it's the idea of hope not despair. And I think that's something that's been incredibly important this year because there is so much despair around," he said. "On the other side of it, there's savings in cutting your power usage and being more sustainable and more efficient."

In Australia, people attended candlelit speed-dating events and gathered at outdoor concerts as the hour of darkness rolled through the country. Sydney's glittering harbor was bathed in shadows as lights dimmed on the steel arch of the city's iconic Harbour Bridge and the nearby Opera House.

Earlier Saturday, the Chatham Islands, a group of small islands about 500 miles (800 kilometers) east of New Zealand, officially kicked off Earth Hour by switching off its diesel generators. Soon after, the lights of Auckland's Sky Tower, the tallest man-made structure in New Zealand, blinked off.

Forty-four New Zealand towns and cities participated in the event, and more than 60,000 people showed up for an Earth Hour-themed hot air ballooning festival in the city of Hamilton.

At Scott Base in Antarctica, New Zealand's 26-member winter team resorted to minimum safety lighting and switched off appliances and computers.

China was participating in the campaign for the first time, with Beijing turning off the lights at its Bird's Nest Stadium and Water Cube, the most prominent venues for the Olympics, according to WWF. Shanghai was also cutting lights in all government buildings and other structures on its waterfront, while Hong Kong, Baoding, Changchun, Dalian, Nanjing and Guangzhou were also participating, WWF said.

However, the official WWF Earth Hour Web site appeared to be blocked in Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin on Saturday afternoon. While China rarely gives reasons for blocking Web sites, the campaign coincided with the 50th anniversary of the suppression of an uprising in Tibet that forced the Dalai Lama to go into exile.

In Hong Kong, the government planned to suspend its nightly "Symphony of Lights," which beams lasers and lights into the sky from 44 buildings on the city's famed Victoria Harbor. Landmarks along the harbor also were to switch off nonessential lights for an hour.

Later Saturday, Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva planned to press a button to turn off the lights at Khao San Road, a famous haven for budget travelers in Bangkok that is packed with bars and outdoor cafes.

Lights were to go down at the Grand Palace and other riverside monuments, and businesses along some of the Thai capital's busiest boulevards were also asked to participate, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said in a statement.

The capital hoped to reduce electricity consumption in the city of more than 8 million people by at least 30 percent — or 1,400 megawatts — during the event. Earth Hour organizers say there's no uniform way to measure how much energy is saved worldwide.

Earth Hour 2009 has garnered support from global corporations, nonprofit groups, schools, scientists and celebrities — including Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett and retired Cape Town Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

McDonald's Corp. planned to dim its arches at 500 locations around the Midwest in the United States. The Marriott, Ritz-Carlton and Fairmont hotel chains and Coca-Cola Co. also planned to participate.

Bosch Powers Down During Earth Hour 2009

30 Bosch facilities will turn off the lights for one hour on March 28, 2009 at 8:30 p.m. local time in recognition of World Wildlife Fund's (WWF) Earth Hour 2009. Earth Hour is a global initiative of the WWF, where individuals, businesses and governments turn off their lights for one hour to show support for action on climate change. Amongst others, Bosch's facilities in Farmington Hills and Plymouth, Mich. will be dark for 60 minutes. The Bosch Group global headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany, participated in WWF's Earth Hour 2008.

Globally, Bosch is committed to environmental stewardship through its site practices and product development. The Bosch Group has established a target of decreasing CO2 emissions among its worldwide manufacturing operations by at least 25 percent against 2007 levels by 2020. In addition to participating in Earth Hour 2009, Bosch has partnered with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (www.wbcsd.org), a coalition of companies dedicated to pursuing sustainable growth.

In 2008, the company joined the Chicago Climate Exchange and committed to reducing direct greenhouse gas emissions at its US operations by six percent by 2010, compared to a baseline from the year 2000.

"In the U.S., Bosch is working diligently to create more effective energy and sustainability practices," said John Mirsky, vice president, technical and engineering services, Robert Bosch LLC. "We encourage all associates to participate in environmentally-responsible practices in the office, including recycling and energy conservation."

"In addition to implementing eco-conscious measures within our sites, Bosch continues to develop energy-efficient technologies, even in the difficult times we currently face," said Peter Marks, chairman, president and CEO, Robert Bosch LLC. "For the past two years, more than 40 percent of our R&D was directed at products that help protect the environment and conserve natural resources."

Ecology is one of the pillars of Bosch's success and has been a key driver for many product innovations, not only automotive powertrain technology, but systems utilizing renewable energies - from gearboxes for wind turbines to ground source heat pumps, and from solar collectors to photovoltaics. Examples of Bosch sustainable technology include:

USA: West Memphis, AR; Santa Barbara, CA; Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach, FL; Albion, IN; Farmington Hills, Plymouth and St. Joseph, MI; Burnsville and Glencoe, MN; Londonderry, NH; South Plainfield, NJ; Fairport, NY; Lincolnton and Raleigh, NC; Pittsburgh and Somerset, PA; Charleston, SC; Johnson City and Knoxville, TN; Waitsfield and Williston, VT

Mexico: Aguascalientes, Juarez, Mexicali and San Luis Potosi

Canada: Mississauga, Ontario

About Bosch

The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. According to preliminary figures, some 282,000 associates generated sales of roughly 45 billion euros in the areas of automotive and industrial technology, consumer goods, and building technology in fiscal 2008. The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its more than 300 subsidiaries and regional companies in over 60 countries. If its sales and service partners are included, then Bosch is represented in roughly 150 countries. This worldwide development, manufacturing, and sales network is the foundation for further growth. Each year, Bosch spends more than three billion euros for research and development, and applies for over 3,000 patents worldwide. With all its products and services, Bosch enhances the quality of life by providing solutions which are both innovative and beneficial.

In North America, the Bosch Group manufactures and markets automotive original equipment and aftermarket products, industrial automation and mobile products, power tools and accessories, security technology, thermo-technology, packaging equipment and household appliances. Bosch employs approximately 25,000 associates in more than 70 locations throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico, with reported sales of $9.5 billion in fiscal 2007. For more information on the company, visit www.boschusa.com.