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Malaysia Counting Down to Earth Hour
Corporate Malaysia, Iconic landmarks and Celebrities join hands to fight against Climate Change
Kuala Lumpur – Imagine a major part of Kuala Lumpur turning its lights out almost simultaneously for one hour. A city in darkness would definitely get the town talking on what all the fuss is about.
On 28 March, Malaysia will be taking part in a global movement to stand united with 1000 cities and its peoples for Earth Hour by switching off non-essential lights for one hour.
Earth Hour, which will take place on 28 March 2009, 8.30pm to 9.30pm (local time), is aimed at promoting awareness to fight against climate change.
“The act of switching non-essential lights is a simple and effortless step that every person can take to trigger a huge positive impact against climate change. The message we are trying to give is that every person, by taking a small action such as turning off a light, can make a huge difference in the fight against climate change”, said WWF Malaysia Chief Executive Officer, Dato' Dr Dionysius Sharma.
Earth Hour is an initiative started by World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF) in 2007 in Sydney, Australia. Last year 50 million people across 35 countries took part in this movement. This year WWF is targeting 1 billion people worldwide - individuals, government and corporations alike and WWF Malaysia is joining the ranks to lead Malaysians to be part of this global action. “Humanity is not in a position to allow our activities to warm up the planet. Much is at stake; biodiversity, our loved ones and ourselves. Let's start with an hour and stop only when we have created hope for planet Earth”, Dato' Dr Dionysius Sharma further said.
Today’s launch kicks off WWF Malaysia’s drive to muster the support and participation of Malaysians, targeting at least 5 million individuals and corporations as well as building owners and the government.
One of Kuala Lumpur’s most iconic landmarks, The KL Tower has graciously offered their support to the Earth Hour movement by providing the venue for the launch of Earth Hour today as well as for the Earth Hour event on 28 March. "Menara Kuala Lumpur, under it's Tower of Hope programme, is committed to raise awareness on climate change and being the first monument in Malaysia to participate for this cause, we would like to call upon other buildings in this country to do the same." said Dato' Zulkifli Mohamad, Chief Executive Officer of Menara Kuala Lumpur.
Dato' Dr Dionysius Sharma added, “We are ecstatic that KL Tower has pledged their support for Earth Hour and we are hoping to get our world famous PETRONAS Twin Towers to be involved as well. Other iconic landmarks around the world such as the Taipei 101 tower in Taiwan and Dubai’s Burj Al Arab have already pledged their support for this cause”.
Meanwhile local celebrities have also joined hands together with WWF Malaysia to lend their support to drive this cause to the masses. Among celebrities and personalities who have confirmed their participation for Earth Hour are Zainal Abidin, Alex Yoong, Karamjit Singh, Stephanie Chai, Lina Teoh, Shebby Singh, Daphne Iking, Sharifah Amani, Sarimah, Sazzy Falak, Rina Omar, Aishah Sinclair and Lyn Lim. These celebrities will participate in promotional events leading up to Earth Hour. Malaysia’s very own famous film director, Yasmin Ahmad has been appointed as the Ambassador of Earth Hour. Her appointment is very appropriate with the movement’s theme of unity as her films echo the same message as well.
Even individuals have come forward to provide rallying assistance. Thanks to the generous effort of one of Malaysia’s corporate leaders – Dato’ Johan Raslan, President of Institute of Corporate Responsibility Malaysia (ICRM), many companies have come forward to pledge their participation in Earth Hour. Dato’ Johan said, “Supporting Earth Hour by switching off the lights is so simple to do. It is just a small step in the longer journey to raise awareness of climate change. By participating, corporate Malaysia is sending a resounding message that we are serious about sustainability”.
On the media front ASTRO, Media Prima and RTM have pledged to provide air time to run Earth Hour commercials and promotions while at the same time dedicating slots in their talk show programs to promote this initiative, with 8TV pledging to halt transmission of all programs for an hour. “8TV is honored to be part of this momentous event. As a leading media company, and more importantly as citizens of the world, it is our responsibility to help raise awareness towards the need to take action against climate change. 8TV is committed to the message of Earth Hour and will take its first step by reducing broadcasting time by one hour starting from the 1st of March 2009. And in support of Earth Hour 2009, for the first time ever in TV broadcasting history, 8TV will shut down TV transmission from 8.30pm – 9.30pm on March 28. This transmission shutdown, done during our peak prime-time hour, will send a strong message to all Malaysians about the need to slow down climate change.” said it’s 8TV’s Chief Executive Officer, En. Ahmad Izham.
Earth Hour has been a huge success – first in Sydney alone in 2007, and then globally last year and it is a testament to show that the simple act of people switching off their lights can make a resounding statement for a worthy cause.
Malaysians from all walks of life are strongly encouraged to be a part of this global movement and make a difference in the world that we live in. Sign up for Earth Hour at www.earthhour.org/malaysia and make a pledge to switch off your lights now.
About Earth Hour
Earth Hour is a global WWF climate change initiative. Individuals, businesses, governments and communities are invited to turn out their lights for one hour on Saturday March 28, 2009 at 8:30 PM to show their support for action on climate change. The event began in Sydney in 2007, when 2 million people switched off their lights. In 2008, more than 50 million people around the globe participated. In 2009, Earth Hour aims to reach out to 1 billion people in 1,000 cities.
About WWF
WWF is one of the world’s largest and most respected independent conservation organizations, with almost five million supporters and a global network active in more than 100 countries. WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the earth’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature, by conserving the world’s biological diversity, ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable, and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.
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