Earth Hour: Swiss monuments urged to switch off lights

Château de Chillon, Switzerland's most visited historical monument, during Earth Hour in 2012 Keystone / Jean-christophe Bott

Cities and individuals around the world are being called upon to turn off their lights on Saturday to draw attention to the climate emergency.

Many towns and cities in Switzerland will be taking part in the annual Earth Hour event, the world’s largest climate and environmental protection campaign. This is set to take place between 8:30pm and 9:30pm Swiss time.

In Switzerland, which took part for the first time in 2010, the Jet d’Eau in Geneva, the cathedrals in Lausanne and Fribourg, the castles in Bellinzona and the Chapel Bridge in Lucerne, among others, have previously been plunged into darkness.

The next few years will be crucial in the fight against the climate crisis, said WWF Switzerland in a statementExternal link. “If we don’t succeed in halting global warming, humankind and nature will face catastrophic consequences.”

One in six species could become extinct, forest fires would become more frequent, and droughts and floods more dramatic, it said. “The climate crisis is already hitting hardest those who contribute least to global warming. This makes it all the more important to send a signal together.”

Leading by example

“By consciously switching off the lights, cities, companies and private individuals set an example for better nature and climate protection,” explains the WWF.

Launched in 2007, Earth Hour was a joint action of the city of Sydney and WWF Australia. Since then the movement has spread across the world. Major monuments, from the Empire State Building in New York to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, from the Acropolis in Athens to the Pyramids of Giza, have seen their lights go out for an hour.