Earth Hour will See Landmarks Plunge into Darkness

Nearly 7,000 cities and towns from 152 countries will now be participating in the Earth Hour March 23, 2013. Landmarks around the world are expected to switch off lights between 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. local time, as a show of support for the planet, according to media reports.

For the first time in Earth Hour's history, Russia's Kremlin, the President's residence and the Red Square will switch off lights this year. In addition, some 100 landmarks in 70 cities across Russia will join the movement.

Palestine, Tunisia, Galapagos, Suriname, French Guyana, St. Helena and Rwanda are among the countries that are joining the Earth Hour for the first time this year.

"The Earth Hour community has become a powerful force for change, both on local and global scales.  Earth Hour is no longer simply about the symbolic actions of an hour, but the cumulative actions of the global community generating real outcomes for the environment," said Andy Ridley, CEO and Co-Founder of Earth Hour in a news release.

The United Nations said that it will turn off lights for an hour at its office in New York and other regions as a mark for support for the event.

"We participate with an undimmed determination to take action on climate change," said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a news release.

The list of landmarks that will be switch off lights this year include Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge, Tokyo Tower, Taipei 101, The Petronas Towers, Beijing National Stadium (Bird's Nest), Marina Bay Sands Singapore, Gateway of India, The Burj Khalifa, The Church of the Nativity (Birthplace of Jesus, Bethlehem), Table Mountain, Dubrovnik City Walls, Eiffel Tower, Avenue Habib Bourguiba, The Acropolis, Tower of Pisa, The Spanish Steps, Brandenburg Gate, Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, The UK Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, Christ the Redeemer Statue, CN Tower, Las Vegas Strip, Times Square, The Empire State Building, Niagara Falls and many more, according to Earthhour.org.

"What started as an event in Sydney in 2007 with two million people has now become a tradition across the country and across the world," said Dermot O'Gorman, head of WWF-Australia, reports AFP.

However, there are others who see switching off of lights as a gesture that sends a negative message about progress and growth. According to Competitive Enterprise Institute, when people around the world will sit in darkness, CEI will leave lights on to show support for human achievement (calling the hour as Human Achievement Hour).

"To celebrate Human Achievement Hour, participants need only to spend the hour from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm on March 23 enjoying the benefits of capitalism and human innovation: Gather with friends in the warmth of a heated home, watch television, take a hot shower, drink a beer, call a loved one on the phone, or listen to music," CEI said in a statement.