Speaking Out for Nature – Earth Hour 2021

Earth Hour is an annual event that raises awareness about environmental issues like climate change and biodiversity loss by asking people to turn off their lights on Saturday, March 27th, 2021. Starting at 8:30 pm local time landmarks, businesses and private residences will go dark all around the world for one hour. This symbolic gesture is meant to decrease energy usage, but more importantly, it seeks to instill mindfulness that contributes to environmentally responsible actions throughout the year. This year the theme is “speaking up for nature”, it is the first-ever Earth Hour “Virtual Spotlight” which encourages the world to see our planet, the issues we face, and our place within it, in a new light. This includes encouraging people to share a video that will be released on Saturday.

The event puts a spotlight on the perilous state of the planet and calls for urgent action to set nature on the path of recovery. It is hoped that Earth Hour 2021 will build momentum ahead of the United Nations Conference on Biodiversity which is scheduled to take place later this year. The 15th meeting of the United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Kunming, China will set the global environmental agenda for the next decade. The decisions that are made at this conference will have significant implications for environmental preservation, climate action, and sustainable development. It is not overstating the case to say that the future of life on earth hangs in the balance.

In the past decade, Earth Hour has inspired global initiatives for the protection of nature, climate, and the environment, helping drive awareness, action, and policy change. The movement contributed to the creation of a 3.5 million hectare protected marine area in Argentina and a 2,700-hectare Earth Hour forest in Uganda. It also helped to secure new legislation for the protection of seas and forests in Russia, bans on single-use plastics and Styrofoam products, and the planting of 20,000 mangrove seedlings in 13 cities in Indonesia.

People can learn more about biodiversity loss and climate change, they can browse a directory of COVID-safe Earth Hour events or sign the “Voice for the Planet” petition for change that lets world leaders know that you care about nature and that you demand urgent political action to protect our planet. Speaking up for nature also includes personal efforts and pressuring global leaders to act.

Related

• Earth Hour 2019: Nature and Our Connection to Earth
• Earth Hour 2016: A Global Celebration and Call to Climate Action
• Earth Hour 2015 – Earth Hour: Watch the Lights Go Out Around the World
• Earth Hour 2015 – Video Highlights from this Year’s Earth Hour
• Earth Hour 2015 – Why You Need to be Part of it
• Earth Hour 2015: Collective Action to Combat Climate Change
• Earth Hour 2014 – Spiderman is the Earth Hour Ambassador
• Earth Hour 2014 Video
• Earth Hour 2014 Video (60 seconds)
• Earth Hour Blue – Crowdfunding and Crowdsourcing Platform
• Earth Hour 2014 – Past Achievements
• Earth Hour 2013: Why You Should be Part of It!
• Earth Hour 2012: I Will If You Will
• Canadian Participation in Earth Hour 2011 Sets Records
• Go Beyond the Hour
• Make a Successful Earth Hour a Successful Earth Year
• Earth Hour: Tangible Action Beyond the Symbolism